


He’s Here, And Always Listening

by Rainbow_Rampage



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Cannibalism, Demonic Possession, Dream Angst, Dreamon, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Everytime I Add New Tags I Lose A Place In God’s Eyes, Gen, Gore, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Major character death - Freeform, Manipulation, No Romance, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Physical Manipulation, Possession, Possible Torture Get Yo Kids, Psychological Horror, Psychological Torture, Sad Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Sadism, Self-Hatred, Seriously This Is Gonna Get Dark, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, Tags Are Hard, Villain Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Violence, Vomiting, Wilbur Soot and Technoblade and TommyInnit are Siblings, angst no comfort, no beta we die like wilbur, non-canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-12 17:40:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 11
Words: 21,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29014497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rainbow_Rampage/pseuds/Rainbow_Rampage
Summary: “Locking yourself away isn’t going to stop me”“But it will slow you down”———————————————————————————————————Dream never wanted any of this. All he wanted was victory; all he wanted was to be seen as the best. It listened to his desires and wormed it’s way inside his head, and now he can’t even think without it being there to corrupt his thoughts.He has to keep going. He has to push forward.For his friends.(read tags homies don’t read this if it’ll trigger you we out here to entertain not to scar can I get an amen)
Comments: 66
Kudos: 392





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, and thanks for stopping by to read this! Apologizes if anything seems out of whack or doesn’t look right, please let me know. This is my first time writing fanfic on AO3, so I’m kinda scared. Anyway, I won’t keep you long! Enjoy!

‘You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by it’

I never really understood that quote. Punished by my own emotions? Fat chance, if anyone can keep themselves under control it’s me.

Or...it was me…

I didn’t really think anything about it after I lost that first scuffle. The scraping, nagging, constant voice in my head was probably just my inner drive, pushing me to the best me I could be. An inner confidence I hadn’t had until I lost those discs for the first time.

I often compare that first mistake to a set of dominos, or a boulder of snow rolling down a mountain. Everything I was denying kept falling into place and becoming a bigger problem.

But when L’Manberg gained its independence, that voice changed.

And my life changed with it.

The voice got...louder. Deeper. It was still my voice, but it was…wrong. Different. I tried my best to adjust to the change, but pretty soon my health started changing too.

It started off pretty small. I’d fall asleep and wake up in a different place, one of my belongings would either be missing or broken, people telling me they say me acting weird, things like that. I wrote them off as someone playing a prank on me, or sleepwalking, or me just being forgetful; whatever helped me just ignore the problem and move on.

That was my second mistake. Pretending like everything was fine, when in reality I was falling apart.

It was after Schlatt had been sworn in as president that things started to go even more wrong.

I started having nightmares. At first they were pretty mild, just small snippets of burning cities or my friends’ blood on my hands. It wasn’t something I hadn’t seen before; I’d been having nightmares like that since we started this damned server. But they became more and more frequent, more and more detailed, longer and longer until it became almost impossible to tell if they were just dreams.

I made my third mistake when I decided not to tell anyone about my nightmares.

It didn’t take me too long to get used to those dreams, but it took me longer to get used to the blackouts. Waking up in a different place was one thing, but waking up to terrifying messages so horrible you refuse to tell anyone what they said scribbled all over your wall is something else. I blamed Tommy, Wilbur, Tubbo, anyone who had even the smallest motivation was a suspect. But after the writings on the walls told things that only I would know, I began to worry.

I started sleeping outside, somewhere without walls to write on or tools to write with. But that didn't stop it. If anything, it made it worse, since now those haunting messages were being scratched into my flesh as I slept. I’d sleep on a mountain far away from any branches or twigs to wake up to vulgar words etched into my skin with my sword caked in my own blood. I’d completely disarm myself of anything that could even remotely be used to hurt me only to wake up with my mouth full of blood and my nails wet and red.

I’m lucky none of them left scars.

After Techno executed Tubbo, things went from bad to worse.

I don’t really know how else to describe it other than my eyes started...breaking. Some days I’d go blind without warning, other days it’d be so bright I thought my pupils would burst. Shadows started appearing in places shadows shouldn’t appear, hallucinations of horrid monsters began plaguing my vision. It became almost impossible to do anything except sit in darkness and hope it stopped.

Then I started waking up in the middle of the night to a twisted pain in my gut, like someone had rammed me with a trident and was spinning my intestines like spaghetti. I tried everything, but nothing I could do would relieve it. It became almost impossible to sleep, and the few minutes I got were still constantly plagued with those godforsaken nightmares.

I did my absolute best, but I couldn’t figure out what was happening to me. But...that voice. It offered a solution. It had slowly been changing from a scraping on the back of my mind to a looming presence, constantly lurking right behind me. It started...talking directly to me, insisting it could help me stop everything. The wars, the deaths, the hate and bickering. It told me it could stop it all.

I wasn’t thinking clearly. Sleeping had become impossible. I could barely eat or drink due to the pain in my stomach, and the visual distortions refused to stop. The blackouts were becoming more and more frequent, and the disgusting phrases that had been written on my body and along the walls were becoming too much to bear.

I should’ve known it was behind it all, but I didn’t.

That was my fourth and final mistake. Listening to that voice. Talking to it. Making...making friends with it. Learning from it.

At first it wasn’t all that bad. The more I talked to it, the weaker and weaker the symptoms became. There were days where I could sleep for more than a few hours at a time. The blackouts became less frequent, and the writing halted to a stop. The pain was washing away, and I felt like I had finally gotten a hold on myself.

What a fool I was.

It played me like a damn fiddle.

November 16th was a terrible day.

I don’t know what was stopping it from doing what it wanted, but whatever it was must’ve been destroyed when Manburg was bombed. I tried my best to stop the destruction, but after it had all subsided I had hoped for a peaceful world. The world the voice had promised me.

Had I known what would happen, things would be different. Much, much different.

Wilbur was dead. Tubbo was President. Techno had run off to plan, and I was left alone.

I didn’t mind, of course. I thought the war was over; I thought peace was finally here.

I told the voice I didn’t need it’s help anymore. Scheming and manipulating people wasn’t part of the new world. It...didn’t seem to like that. It started berating me about our relationship, telling me that I was nothing without him, that I would regret trying to get rid of it. That’s when I realized there was something really wrong.

I did my best to block out the voice after that, but ignoring it soon proved to be practically impossible. It had reached a point where it was loud enough to snuff out any other sound that tried to reach my ears. Every symptom of it’s power which had been stopped after our agreement returned tenfold. It was agonizing. I couldn’t even tell anyone about it; it hurt too much to speak.

I begged the voice to stop, but it didn’t listen. According to it, I had earned this on myself when I had refused it’s ‘generosity’.

But with all of this torture, it was still getting started.

One day, I woke from one of my brief moments of sleep to find myself in a field. It wasn’t unusual for me to wake in a different location from when I had fallen asleep, but there was something off this time. There was nothing around except for a small pond, with water as calm as the sky and as clear as a soul. It was both intriguing and terrifying, especially since the voice had gone silent. For the first time in a while, I felt...at peace.

I miss that feeling.

The field was completely void of all life. There were no signs of horses, sheep, cows, and there weren’t even any fish in the pond. It was eerie, but with everything I had suffered through I didn’t find anything odd about it. The pond had my full attention.

I peered over the edge at my reflection in the water, the lack of ripples allowing the pond to reflect my image perfectly. But, at the same time, it...it wasn’t me. It looked like me, but there were minor details about it that made it clear something was wrong. It’s eyes were black with green pupils, it’s scar deeper and more rigid than my own. It’s hair was black, accented by the purple hoodie it wore. Unlike me, it had apparently decided wearing a mask was beneath it. And it was...smiling.

I wasn’t smiling.

I reached out to touch the reflection. The water felt warm but alien, as if it was reflective tar, sticky and difficult to be free from. My reflection reached back at me, connecting us at our fingertips. For a moment, everything was still. Quiet. Peaceful.

Then, my reflection reached out of the water to grab my wrist.

I reacted, of course, but it’s grip was like iron. I had to be dreaming, right? This couldn’t be real.

However, my attempts to wake myself up were frugal, as my reflection began to pull me into the pond. I did my best to resist it, but it had some sort of superhuman strength. I couldn’t do anything, and that damn reflection wouldn’t stop smiling.

I don’t remember much about what happened after it had finished yanking me into that transparent tar. It was suffocating, but at the same time I could breathe fine. It was cold, but I felt like I was boiling. I was blinded, but yet I could still see fine. The sky was so clear above the surface of the tar, but try as I might, nothing I could do would breach it. It was like the sticky surface had frozen over in the two seconds it took me to realize what had happened. I was trapped.

And that...that thing I had reflected in the water was standing above me, perfectly balanced on the surface. I tried my best to pull it...to pull him into the water like he had pulled me in, but I couldn’t reach him. I couldn’t break through. I could tell he knew that, too, since he knelt down to make eye contact with me.

I’ll never forget that image for as long as I live. Those sadistic black eyes with that twisted smile, staring at me as I did everything I could to break free.

After a couple moments of silence, he lifted a single finger to his mouth, and walked away.

I had to have been in that pond for one, maybe two minutes, but to me it felt like an eternity. Perhaps it was the confusion, the fear, or maybe a mixture of both which made it feel so long, but I didn’t have long to ponder over it before I blacked out again.

I woke up on a mountain overlooking that same field, that same pond. I took a few seconds to collect myself, to remember what happened and move on.

It only took me a moment or two to realize I wasn’t alone.

Standing only a few meters away was...me. Not the reflection I had seen in the pond, but just...me. It was practically a perfect replica, down to the freckle I had behind my right ear. Only someone who had previously owned that body would have noticed the discolored eyes, the still-bleeding scar, that grotesque smile. It clicked for me soon after that.

Of course it looked like me. It was me.

Or at least, it used to be.

Until I let it in.

…

I tried my best to hold onto any part of me, but everything I did passed right through him. It passed through everything. I was nothing but a spectre, lingering just out of each of everyone. He told me later what had happened, but I refused to believe him. I wasn’t just going to give up as he walked away with me in tow, like a dog on a leash.

For the next few months, I could do nothing but watch as he tore apart everything around him. Insighting wars, betraying friends, intimidating innocent people, all of it. I was forced to sit on the sidelines as he broke friendships, ruined families, built walls where there shouldn’t have been walls. And what he did to Tommy…

It sickens me to this day that I couldn’t stop it.

But it was when he payed for the construction of the prison that I knew I could take my chance. I had been practicing taking back control every night, when he wasn’t focused on keeping me out and I could get to work.

I had only had a small glance at it from when he was flipping through that accursed book, but it was enough to memorize those runes. Asking Sam to build them into the walls of the prison was the easy part. Keeping him out of my head so he couldn’t find out was harder, much harder.

And when the day came where Tommy and Tubbo had to do their best against him, I did my best to hide the rest of the payment Punz was supposed to receive from him. I prayed and prayed that it would be enough, and it really came down to the wire.

But I did it.

I regained control, even if it means being trapped again.

I’d take imprisonment from the outside world then imprisonment from my own skin any day.

Thank God Sam listened to me, even if he didn’t know what for.

But it’s not gone. It’s still here. I must’ve forgotten a part of the ritual, or one of the runes must’ve been damaged.

It might not be able to take me while I’m in here, but that isn’t stopping it from trying. I can’t leave this place, not ever.

It’s the price I pay for letting it in in the first place.

It’s my fault, so I’ll pay for it my way.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“ **Locking yourself away isn’t going to stop me**.”

“But it will slow you down.”

“ **And who are you even talking to? There’s nobody here. Nobody that cares enough to listen to your little recount, anyway**.”

“...shut up.”

“ **You’re as pathetic as they come, Dream**.”


	2. I Can Hear It Mocking Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah s***, here we go again.  
> Sorry if anything looks janky, I was messing with the tags and don’t know if I broke anything.  
> And yes I bolded the demon’s text in Ch.1 after I figured out I could. I’ll be doing that from now on to give it more of a pop, and also to differentiate it’s voice as more...demonic. I wanted to bold it’s pronouns too but I was lazy.  
> (Sorry if anything looks janky because of that, too. This site is great in so many ways but also confusing?)  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

Dream was starting to hate that clock.

He had liked it at first. It was his reminder that he had done the right thing. The sun was rising and falling, people could watch the stars without worrying they’d never see the sky again. Everything was perfect out there, it had to be. He had taken care of the main problem.

But now? All it did was remind him how long he had been in here.

Alone.

With it.

“ **I thought we moved past all this ‘it’ shenanigans. It’s not very respectful**.”

Dream winced and closed his eyes at the sound of its voice, pressing his forehead against the cold obsidian in an attempt to block it out. It didn’t work, of course, but it made him feel better.

“And I thought you said you were gonna be quiet today” Dream responded, pulling himself away from the wall to face his unwanted counterpart. 

Unlike Dream, it didn’t look any different then it did back at the pond. It still had that unbreakable smile under it’s mangled scar adorning the unavoidable gaze it had trained on Dream. The only major difference Dream had noticed was that it seemed...grayer, like someone had dropped it in the middle of a movie from the 1970s.

The color change didn’t do anything to how unnerving it was.

Thank God nobody else could see it.

“ **I never said I was gonna be quiet today. I just said I’d be quiet when Tommy shows up** ” It remarked, flipping boringly through the book Dream had been writing. “ **And since the little brat isn’t here yet, you still get the chance of hearing my angelic voice. Aren’t you lucky?** ”

“Angelic is putting it lightly” Dream mumbled, choosing to ignore the part about being ‘lucky’. 

It frowned at him, closing the book and setting it back on the lecture. 

“ **What’s wrong with you?** ” It asked, raising an eyebrow quizzically. “ **You’re acting more pitiful then usual, and that’s really saying something** ”

“Nothing’s wrong with me” Dream responded quickly. “I’m just...tired. You’re stupid nightmares kept me up all night”

“ **Yeah, they did, didn’t they? Some of my best works. Might use ‘em again. Dont fix it if it isn’t broken, y‘ know?** ” It chuckled. “ **But be clean with me. I know that’s not the real issue here** ”

“How do you-“

“ **I’m still in that head of yours, Dreamer** ” It said, tapping it’s forehead. “ **You’re stressed about something, and the lack of sleep isn’t it** ”

Dream fell silent, taking a shaky breath and plopping himself down onto the sad excuse for a bed his cell had been provided with, the molded wood groaning indignantly as it pulled against the stringy wood. 

“ **So, are you gonna tell me what’s wrong or do I gotta yank it outta that skull of yours?** ” It continued, resting it’s hand in the pocket of it’s hoodie. 

It didn't know. That was good. Dream could lie.

“I’m...worried about what’ll happen when Tommy gets here.”

“ **What exactly are you worried about? It’s not like they’ll kill us. Despite your ‘grand’ attempt at getting rid of me, they still need us to fix their dead** ”

“I’m not worried about what he’ll do, I’m worried about what _you’ll_ do”

It opened it’s mouth to respond, before shutting it quickly. “ **That’s actually a pretty good thing to be scared of. But c’mon, I already promised I wouldn’t hurt the bastard. And you know I don’t go back on my word** ”

Dream didn’t respond, choosing instead to lie back on the mattress and take a deep breath. He didn’t bother trying to fall asleep; it really didn’t enjoy when he cut off their conversations for a small bit of shut-eye. He could already sense it getting tense, and he’d have to dignify it with a response if he wanted to avoid anything...unpleasant.

“The last time Tommy visited, you stood in the corner and set yourself on fire”

“ **I didn’t hurt him, though. I didn’t lie** ”

“Just because you chose that _one_ time not to lie to me doesn’t mean I’m going to start trusting you. I made that mistake once, and I refuse to make it again”

“ **You’re over-dramatic as always, Dreamer** ” It sneered, setting it’s book back on the lectern. “ **When are you gonna realize there’s no point to any of this? You can’t keep me here forever** ”

“But I _can_ keep you here. And I will. For as long as I can” Dream responded loudly, sitting up quickly to make eye-contact with it. 

“ **Even if it means driving away everyone else?** ” 

“Especially if it means driving everyone else away. I deserve it, for even _entertaining_ your existence” 

“ **There you go again, with your self-sacrificing trash. How boring. I have half a mind to dump you here and find myself a new host** ” It snapped, giving Dream one of it’s rarer glares- the one Dream dubbed _I Would Murder You If I Could_.

“But you can’t, can you? You’re stuck here. With me” Dream mocked, taking one of the few opportunities to give himself an upper-hand on it. He knew it hated when Dream had the advantage, and he knew he’d suffer for it later. But Dream had learned to live in the moment, so for now he didn’t care.

It fell silent, staring at Dream with a murderous intent that Dream knew couldn’t go anywhere. There was a brief moment of silence between the two, one that Dream savored to no end but ended too quickly as it suddenly scoffed, smirking.

“ **Where’s that rebellious spark on the days where I _don’t_ have to hold back on you?**” It asked darkly, informing Dream that he was right about the ‘suffer for it later’ theory. 

“You? Holding back on me? It damn sure doesn’t show” Dream snorted, shaking his head. 

“ **Oh, I’m sure. But we can’t have you looking like a train wreck when Tommy shows up. We’ve gotta think about our presentation!** ” It said dramatically, splashing out it’s hands like it was taking a particularly low bow. 

“Now who's being over-dramatic?” Dream remarked, walking past it to grab the book off the lectern.

“ **It’s not called being over-dramatic, it’s called worrying your meat-suit is gonna look horrendous in front of our only way outta here** ” It said, nonchalantly knocking the book off the lectern to force Dream to bend down and grab it. 

“You can kiss that wish goodbye. You should know better than anyone that out of everyone on this server, TommyInnit is the _least_ likely person to want us out” Dream said, dusting the book off and opening it to the last place he had left off on his writing. 

“ **I dunno. I’ve got a good feeling about today. And don’t get me started on tomorrow** ” It said blankly, resting a hand on Dream’s shoulder. Despite only being a spectre, Dream could still feel it’s grip tighten as it spoke.

Almost like it knew.

Did it know?

Was it just toying with him?

No. Dream couldn’t think about that. He was so close to securing his position, he couldn’t stop-

Dream’s thoughts were interrupted by the familiar sounds of pistons moving just outside his cell, alerting him and his...roommate to the new prospect.

TommyInnit had arrived, and Dream had one chance to pull this off. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger pog? What exactly is Dream’s plan? Does the demon know it, or is he just being his usual creepy self? Fine out next time on ‘My Updating Schedule Is As Solid As The Defenses Around The White House’.


	3. Reality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we’re back! No shame in 2-day update, right?  
> Tbh I probably could’ve posted this yesterday. I had the meat of it done, just had to wrap up the beginning and the end. But whatever, right?  
> Anyway, hope you enjoy! I know I sure did  
> Uh...  
> Oh!  
> Trigger warning for insects and body horror! Seriously! It’s gonna get bad!

Go time.

Now or never.

No choice.

Dream’s head was spinning as Tommy stepped into his cell, wearing that bratty grin that had become synonymous with his image. 

“Hey there, Big Man” He said, a slight taunt in his voice. “Nice weather, huh? Oh wait- there’s no weather in here!”

“ **Damn, I forgot how terrible he was at trash talk. Seriously, my grandmother could do better. And I don’t even** **_have_ ** **one!** ” It remarked, waving a hand in front of Tommy’s face. Tommy didn't notice it, however, reminding Dream of how _very not real_ it was. 

“What brings you here today, Tommy?” Dream mumbled, doing his best not to give it any sort of reaction.

Tommy splayed his hands out to his sides, giving a slight chuckle. “Don’t act like you don’t know why I’m here, Dream. Let’s not make it any harder than it has to be; gimme the books”

“Is that really all you came here for?”

“What, were you hoping for a dramatic reunion? We’re not friends, Dream”

“ **Ooo, he remembers! Love it when they do that; makes it much more fun when I bleed their lungs dry** ” It said joyfully, throwing it’s arms over Dream’s shoulders like a lover in high-jinks. 

Dream slowed his breathing in order to respond, trying his best not to let it get under his skin.

“It’s not a very...interesting book, but I guess you can-”

“Of course it’s not a very interesting book. _You_ wrote it, and it’s not very interesting here. Boring plus empty equals uninteresting. I went to school. You probably didn’t, but I did” Tommy mocked, causing Dream to raise an eyebrow. At least with everything going on, TommyInnit was still a bratty piece of shit. 

“ **Tell him you can’t wait to tear that smirk off his face and shove it down his throat** ” It whispered into Dream’s ear, sending a shiver down Dream’s spine which he hoped to God Tommy didn’t notice. 

“Then tell me what’s going on out there. I don’t exactly get the Dream SMP Newsletter” Dream said instead, hearing it click it’s tongue in disappointment.

“You want me to tell you what’s been happening? I’m not your personal news boy” Tommy replied angrily, folding his arms.

“Sure you’re not, but it’d make my books much more interesting” Dream retorted, trying to add that signature malice that it loved to use when it spoke. 

Tommy sighed, rubbing the back of his head with his right hand. “Fine. Whatever. Where do I even start…?”

Dream sighed shakily. This was going well. It hadn’t done anything so far. Maybe he could get this done without any problems.

Unfortunately, it seemed Fate was an old enemy of his.

“ **You know I’m not exactly fond of it when you don’t listen to me** ” It snarled into his ear, taking it’s arms off Dream's shoulders and stepping closer to Tommy.

_You can’t do anything_ , Dream thought at it frantically. _You promised not to hurt him!_

“ **I don’t have to hurt him to punish you, Dream** ” It chastised as it stepped behind Tommy and placed it’s hands on his shoulders. “ **You, out of** **_everyone_ ** **, should know that** ”

Dream had experience with ignoring it. He had been doing it for the better part of the year, hadn’t he?

But this...

This was new.

Dream watched with controlled horror as it dug it’s nails into Tommy’s left eye, piercing the misty sclera and causing a spurt of blood to trickle down the young boy’s face. Tommy didn’t react, of course, which made the situation much worse when it tightened it’s grip and jerked the pearly orb out of Tommy’s skull. Dream fought the reflex to vomit, which became extraordinarily difficult upon hearing the eye’s muscle snap in two. 

Dream was finding it very difficult to keep up the conversation.

He found it more of a struggle once it moved onto Tommy’s second eye, jamming it’s fingers into Tommy’s eye-socket and forcefully freeing it from its optic nerve.

_Stay calm_ , Dream told himself. _None of this is real_

Unfortunately, it didn’t feel any less real then it had.

It took the two new eyes it had collected and admired them, smudging some of Tommy’s blood off of the now-dead pupil. It turned them over in it’s palms, examining them like a piece of plastic. 

Why did it have to pick _this_ moment to fall deathly silent?

Dream did his best to maintain eye-contact with Tommy, knowing damn well that nothing it was doing had any real impact on the boy. But from trying his best not to turn towards it, while simultaneously staring into a pair of empty, bloody, rotting voids? 

It wasn’t doing him any miracles for his nausea.

But he didn’t look away. He stared right into those empty eye-sockets. He ignored the blood pouring from the now-exposed wounds, trickling down Tommy’s face and pooling around his feet. He ignored the pungent odor emanating from the orifices, which smelled like a freshly-slain corpse basking in the desert sun for weeks on end. He ignored it as it ‘accidentally’ dropped one of Tommy’s eyes, smushing it under-heel with a sickening squelch. He even ignored the centipedes and spiders which had begun crawling out of Tommy’s sockets, which fell onto the obsidian floor and started climbing up Dream’s legs. 

He ignored all of this, and still nodded once Tommy had finished whatever ramble he had been spitting this entire time.

It was watching him, Dream could tell. Studying him. Waiting for some sign of break or hesitation. 

Dream wasn’t going to allow it that satisfaction, but even he could tell he wasn’t far off from breaking once the centipedes began finding home in Dream’s ears. 

So, in a moment of last desperation, Dream put on his largest smile and pulled out a book from the one chest which was provided to him.

“Here. Take it. It’s yours” Dream said insistently, shoving the book into Tommy’s bloody hands. Dream could feel it scowl suspiciously, and Dream tried his best not to look over at it as it took a bite out of Tommy’s remaining eye. 

“Woah. What’s with the sudden change of attitude, Big M-“ Tommy started to say, being interrupted by Dream as he quickly turned around and pressed his forehead against the obsidian wall.

“You should go, Tommy. Get out. And-and take the book with you. Read it with Tubbo. Or Techno. Or Philza. I don’t care who, just _get out_!”

Those last few words had been harsher then he meant them to be, but Dream couldn’t focus on that. Not after the spiders had begun devouring what was left of the skin around Tommy’s eyes. 

Dream heard Tommy take a surprised step back towards the lava, and for a split second he was worried the young boy would fall in. There were a few beats of silence before Tommy spoke again.

“Uhm...sure. I guess…I’ll be back next week-” Tommy started, being cut off yet again by Dream’s frantic yelling.

“Get _out!_ Just _get out!_ ” Dream roared, clutching the sides of his head. He didn’t even know who he was yelling at anymore: Tommy, who was trying his best to comprehend the situation. It, which spit the bit of eye it was chewing on onto the floor. The centipedes, which he could feel burrowing deeper and deeper into his head. The spiders, which had begun to delve into _his_ eyes. 

All of it. All of it was too much. 

“Okay! Okay, Jesus. I’m leaving. God, Dream, you’re such a freak” Tommy cursed under his breath, taking the book Dream had shoved into his arms and turning to leave. “I didn’t even get to finish my story about Sam Nook…” 

Dream didn’t hear what else Tommy had to say. The centipedes had done something to his hearing, he could feel it.

_Why isn’t it stopping?! None of this is real!_ Dream screamed internally, collapsing to the floor.

“ **Because I don’t want it to. What kind of master would I be if I didn’t discipline my servant?** ” It answered, it’s voice radiating inside Dream’s head.

_You…are NOT my master._ Dream thought back, plucking spiders off his eyes. 

Dream could sense it shake it’s head, it’s sigh reverberating in his mind.

It only took a few moments for Dream to realize.

“You knew” Dream muttered miserably, closing his eyes in a final effort to keep the spiders away.

“ **Of course I knew. I’m in your head, Dreamer. There’s nothing you can hide from me** ”

“Then...why did you…?”

“ **Because think about it!** ” It grinned, bending down to make eye-contact with Dream. “ **What is the** **_one thing_ ** **TommyInnit is known for?** ”

Dream tried his best to reply, but felt his consciousness begin to drift away. It noticed, and decided to answer it for him.

“ **It’s** **_not listening_ ** **, Dream. Especially not listening to** **_you_ ** **. You- by all known laws of predictability- set us up for freedom. Really, I should be thanking you, but I don’t particularly like it when my things don’t listen to me and go behind my back** ”

Dream could barely make out what it was saying anymore; he was too far gone. He felt it lift his chin with three fingers, bringing them uncomfortably close as Dream’s mind faded away.

“ **Maybe next time you’ll realize there’s no escape from me** ”

And with that final phrase and the image of it’s horrid grin burned into his mind, Dream blacked out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *BIP*  
> he ded  
> No, not really. Just gone for a second.  
> god I love that demon so much wbfwkskdgpndkowqe he’s great.  
> Posting a chapter in a fanfic about demons in a Jesuit school. Call me a rebel because I be BREAKING these rules!


	4. One Last Apology

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> writing this so late at night while having a chemistry test tomorrow pray for me.  
> not gonna leave a note at the end because it’ll be more dramatic that way.  
> also because it scares me.

Is it possible to call Dream Bitch Boy when he was acting more like Panicked Prat?

Tommy wasn’t sure; Bitch Boy was just so good of a nickname he was having trouble thinking of Dream any other way. But that...rather mean conversation seemed less I Will Get My Revenge and more Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck. 

And why had he kept glancing over Tommy’s shoulder? It’s not like the lava was playing charades with him, right? 

...

He was probably just doing it to fuck with him. 

Tommy kicked a small pebble out of his way, thumbing the leather binding of the book Dream had given him as he walked down Prime Path. It wasn’t titled, which either meant Dream had been right about it sucking or he hadn’t had the chance to finish it. Which was another weird thing: All Dream had to do was write dating advice. He didn’t have to put _that_ much effort in. 

Now that he thought about it, Dream had been acting really weird last time he visited, too...

Probably just another stupid trick. Tommy was done falling for those.

He stopped for a moment, looking down at the book. He was half considering chucking it in a pool of lava or something, or throwing it back into Dream’s stupid scheming face. 

Tommy sighed, looking up into the bright blue sky. The warmth of the sun felt nice on his face as he closed his eyes, feeling the wind in his hair. 

Bah, screw it. He’d read the damn thing. What was the worst that could happen?

Ten minutes later, Tommy was lying on his back on a grassy hill, holding the book above his head as he lazily flipped through it. Despite the...weird...way he’d gotten it, it wasn’t anything special. To be honest, it was one of the worst books he’d ever read.

Chapter 1: Just Be Yourself (Unless You’re TommyInnit)

Chapter 2: Getting Her To Laugh (By Not Being TommyInnit)

Chapter 3: Romantic Dates (That Don’t Include TommyInnit)

On, and on, and on.

Tommy sat up in an angered huff, slamming the book shut. He tossed it behind him without looking, resting an arm on one of his knees.

Who did that stupid green bastard think he was? Tommy was a total catch with the ladies! They’d be lucky to have him! 

Yeah, Dream was probably just jealous because he ain’t got no girl. 

Tommy clenched his teeth, picking at the soft grass beside him, doing his best not to think about Dream or women or that stupid fucking book of course he was datable-

Tommy yelled frustratingly, flopping back down onto the earth as he covered his eyes with his right arm. Why was he letting Dream fuck with him when they weren’t even on the same side of the bars anymore?! Hadn’t he learned anything?

Tommy was too caught up in his angry inner-monologue at Dream that he didn’t hear the footsteps coming up behind him, partially muffled by the grass they walked on.

“Hello?”

Tommy tilted his arm just enough that he could gaze at the figure standing above him.

“Hey Tubbo” Tommy sighed, setting his arm back over his eyes again.

“Whatcha up to?” Tubbo asked, tilting his head just enough that his tiny nubs of horns peek out of his chestnut hair.

“Yelling at Dream” Tommy replied. 

Tubbo raised an eyebrow, looking around confusingly, before settling his eyes on the prison.

“Telepathy, I like it” He said, not taking his eyes off the dark building. 

“No no no...like _internally_ yelling at him”

“But that’s not yelling at him that’s just being angry”

“Yeah, but I’m _imagining_ I’m yelling at him”

“Why don’t you just go actually yell at him?”

“Because I already went there today and Sam closed the prison already”

“Why’d you go visit him?”

“To pick up that _stupid fucking dating book_ I asked him to write” Tommy spat, sitting up aggressively. “I mean, who the _fuck_ does he think he is?! I’m fucking hot, aren’t I?”

“Definitely” Tubbo replied, setting the book on Tommy’s head. “So this is yours then?”

Tommy rolled his eyes, taking the book off his head and glaring at it (and Tubbo). 

“It’s not _mine_ . Dream _gave_ it to me. Really weirdly too”

“Whaddya mean weirdly?” Tubbo asked, sitting beside Tommy.

“I mean he practically threw it at me. And then he yelled at me to leave.”

“Were you annoying him?”

“Of course not! I’m not annoying!” Tommy said dramatically, slamming the book onto the hillside. 

“Right,” Tubbo acknowledged, leaning backwards on his hands. “So what are you gonna do?”

Tommy thought for a moment. What _could_ he do? It’s not like he could storm back into the prison, shake Sam by the collar, force him to reopen Dream’s cell, and chuck that fucking book right back into his fucking face…

… 

Unless...

Tommy stood up briskly, dusting the dirt and grass off the back of his shirt as he scooped up the book and started walking angrily back towards the prison.

“Where are you going?” Tubbo called after him, scrambling to catch up.

“I’m gonna storm back into the prison, shake Sam by the collar, force him to reopen Dream’s cell, and chuck that fucking book right back into Dream’s fucking face!”

“Somehow I knew you’d decide to do that” Tubbo remarked, walking alongside Tommy. “Can I read it before you do that?”

“No,” Tommy said quickly, clutching the book to his chest. “It’s mine”

“But you’re just gonna give it back to Dream anyway I thought?” 

“It’s still mine”

“Then you’re probably gonna want all the pages, right?” 

“The what?” Tommy wheeled around to Tubbo, who had stopped walking a few steps back. He was holding a small piece of torn yellowish paper about the size of a hand between his pointer and middle finger, smiling goofily. 

“Where did…?” Tommy wondered out loud, flipping through the book and counting the pages as he did. 

“Why’d you tear a piece out? Did you really hate it that much?” Tubbo asked, stepping closer to Tommy and holding out the piece of paper. 

“No, I didn’t tear anything out”

“Well, you must’ve, right? Why else would this be here and not in the book?”

“I dunno…” Tommy trailed off, closing the book. “Give it here”

There were only a few minutes of silence as Tommy read the note internally, but the contents of the note changed his mood from ‘Time To Go Make A Stand For Myself‘ to ‘What The Fuck Is This?’ almost instantly. The handwriting was barely legible, causing Tommy to squint like an old lady trying to figure out a video game. And the paper was practically coming apart while he held it; just how old _was_ this shit?

“This is seriously fucked” Tommy declared, handing the note back to Tubbo for him to read. 

There were a few more minutes of silence as Tubbo attempted to read the note.

“Tommy, I-I can’t-” 

“Ah, don’t worry about it. I could barely read it myself” Tommy interrupted, taking the note back and clearing his throat.

_Tommy,_

_I know you and I haven’t always seen eye to eye on things, and I know damn well that I’ve done things that should remain unforgivable, but I need your help._

_I messed up. I messed really, really bad. I summoned it, and now it’s all I can do to stop it from hurting anyone again._

_There’s no point in telling you now. It’s already too late._

_Destroy this book_

_Destroy anything that has even a remote connection to me_

_Never visit me again, and prevent anyone else from visiting me, too_

_~~It’s better this way~~ _

_I’m sorry for destroying your life_

_Tell Wilbur I’m sorry for scaring him_

_Tell Techno I’m sorry for giving up_

_Tell Philza I’m sorry for ruining his family_

_Tell Fundy I’m sorry for leaving him at the altar_

_Tell Bad I’m sorry for forgetting about him_

_Tell Tubbo I’m sorry for destroying his country_

_Tell Ranboo I’m sorry for_ ~~_what it did_~~ _what I did_

_Tell George I’m sorry for breaking his heart_

_Tell Sapnap I’m sorry for fighting with him_

_Tell everyone I forgive them for hating me_

~~_I hate myself, too_ ~~

_Dream_


	5. One Step At A Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can tell why this chapter took so long.  
> You can also tell I just kinda...died at the end xd.  
> At least it’s published now. Hope you guys enjoy!

A cold breeze whispered loudly as Tommy finished reading the note, staring blankly at the lines on the page. The silence which accompanied it was deafening, as both boys tried their best to process what they had just read. 

Sorry?

Dream was sorry?

Dream was sorry _and_ he wanted to be left alone?

Dream was sorry _and_ he wanted to be left alone _and_ there’s now a Mysterious It?

Tommy was trying his best to comprehend what had just happened. He read the note again and again in his mind, eyes racing over the page to try and find something new- something _else_ \- that would make this whole thing suddenly make sense. 

Was this real?

Was Dream really sorry?

Or was this another trick?

“So,” Tubbo said shakily, interrupting Tommy’s thoughts. “I guess I can cross Read A Creepy Note From An Imprisoned Psychopath off my bucket list”

“This doesn’t make any sense” Tommy replied, not taking his eyes off the note. “Why _now?_ And why like _this?_ ” 

“I dunno. Does it matter? It’s probably not even real” 

“Of course it’s real. I’m holding it right now”

“No, I meant like...it’s not really an apology note. Like it’s some sort of joke”

“A joke? Why would Dream joke about being isolated for the rest of his life?” Tommy questioned, finally taking his eyes away from the paper to stare quizzically into Tubbo’s. 

“Well, I don’t know! This is weird” Tubbo declared, running his fingers through his hair. 

“Yeah, you’re telling me…” Tommy trailed off, folding up the note and laying eyes on the prison. “He was acting really weird when I went to visit him, too”

“Yeah, you mentioned that. And he threw a book at you?”

“Sorta? He was sweating a lot and glancing over my shoulder. Kinda gave off the feeling we weren’t alone in there”

“Well, you’re not. Sam’s in there too”

“No not-not Sam” Tommy mused, looking down at the folded note. “Someone else”

“Think it's the ‘it’ from the note?”

“I don’t know _what_ I think! I don’t know what _to_ think! What the fuck is this supposed to mean?!” Tommy yelled angrily, tossing the note onto the ground and storming off towards the prison.

“Wait! Where are you going?!” Tubbo yelled after him, scooping up the note and rushing to catch up. 

“Where do you think?!” Tommy shouted over his shoulder.

“Sam already closed the prison, remember? You’re not gonna be able to get in!”

“He’ll let me in once we show him that stupid note!”

“No, he won’t” Tubbo pointed out, grabbing Tommy’s arm. “He’ll probably do the _opposite_ of that once he finds out the _one prisoner_ he’s been keeping managed to sneak something outside the walls”

“Well then what do you think we should do?” Tommy scowled, pulling his arm out of Tubbo’s grip. “Just ignore it? What if that’s what he wants?”

“Well, what if making a big deal about it is _also_ what he wants?”

“What-”

“We’re not in a good place right now, Tommy” Tubbo said slowly, holding out the note for Tommy to take. “We need to be careful, because if this _is_ another trick, we can’t fall for it”

Tommy took the note and pocketed it, closing his eyes and breathing through his nose.

“Okay. Fine. Whatever. Then what do we do?”

Tubbo’s eyes glistened with excitement as he smiled and cleared his throat.

“We’ll probably need a second opinion. Let’s go find someone to get one from”

“Well, yeah, duh, but who the hell would want to listen to _us_ talk about _Dream_ of all people?”

“I can think of a few”

“Oh, really?” Tommy raised an eyebrow, folding his arms. “Like who?”

“Ranboo’s pretty nice”

“Ranboo would forget our entire conversation ten seconds after it happened”

“Oh...good point. Maybe Jack?”

“He doesn’t seem very up to helping anyone lately. Always talking to Niki, it’s weird”

“Okay…uh…Punz?”

“I don’t trust him that much. I know he _says_ he’s not with Dream anymore, but lying wouldn’t be a first for him” 

Tubbo nodded in agreement, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, I...kinda feel the same way. What about George and Sapnap? They might be willing to talk to about him”

“They’re the best ones we’ve got so far, I guess” Tommy sighed, unfolding his arms and placing his hands on his hips. 

“I passed by them on my way to talk to you. C’mon” Tubbo beckoned, leading a Tubbo further up Prime Path. 

They walked for about five minutes, passing by some of the more famous landmarks as they went. The ruins of L’Manberg, still smoldering with gunpowder. The site of Techno’s attempted execution, the anvil standing ominously on it’s own.

The prison, which seemed much more intimidating after reading Dream’s note. 

Tommy bobbed his head, taking a short breath as he averted his eyes and kept walking.

_One thing at a time_ , he told himself. _Don’t rush in_.

They found George and Sapnap at the remains of the Community House, picking through the rubble.

Well, George was. Sapnap was sitting against a wall reading. 

“Hey, Tommy” Sapnap remarked, not looking up from his novel. 

“Hi, Sapnap” Tommy replied. “What are y’all doing?”

“ _I’m_ trying to salvage something. _Sapnap_ is being useless, like always” George grumbled, prying a plank of wood free from the broken walls. 

“I’m not being useless! I’m just...taking a little break, s’ all!” Sapnap retorted, turning a page in his book. 

“Okay, you’ve been on a ‘break’ for the last _hour_ ”

“It’s an extended break”

“There’s no such thing-”

“Okay, guys, I’m sorry for interrupting, but we need to talk to you” Tubbo interrupted.

“Yeah, George, they need to talk to us” Sapnap joked, winking at George as the color-blind man growled back. 

Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose. “I can’t believe I’m being the mature one here, but can you guys stop fighting for _ten seconds_ so we can ask you a question?”

“Go ahead, I’m not stopping you,” Sapnap said. “George might, but I won’t”

“I swear to God, Sapnap, I’m gonna-”

“Okay, _okay_!” Tommy cut in, taking the note out of his pocket. “Look, we got this thing from Dream, and-”

Tommy was interrupted by the sound of George dropping the wood he was holding at the mention of Dream’s name.

There was silence for a few moments, the only noise being the savage wind which had seemingly sensed the tension and had decided to pick up it’s pace. 

Sapnap slammed his book shut, staring off into the distance. 

“You should go, Tommy” Sapnap forced out through his teeth, emotion gone from his voice. 

“But-“

“We don’t know a Dream anymore, Tommy. You should go” Sapnap spat, the anger in his eyes barely hiding the obvious sadness. 

Tubbo tugged on Tommy’s arm, pulling him away. “He’s right, Tommy. Let’s just leave”

“But this was your-”

“We’ve already messed up this conversation. Let’s _go_ ”

Tubbo started to walk away, weakly tugging at Tommy’s arm in an attempt to bring them both away from the Community House. Tommy didn’t fight back, walking with Tubbo before taking one look back.

Was George...shaking?

Tommy shook his head and kept walking, putting the situation in the back of his mind.

“So...that didn’t go as planned” he said blankly, rubbing his hands together.

“Yeah...I shoulda seen that coming” Tubbo agreed, his shoulders sagging.

“What now? Is there anyone left who knows a lot about Dream who we haven’t talked to?”

“Well, let’s see. There’s Sam, Ranboo, Jack, Punz, George, Sapnap, and…”

Tommy could practically see the lightbulb over Tubbo’s head as a mischievous grin spreads across his face.

It only takes a few seconds for Tommy to realize what idea his best friend just had. 

“Oh, no. No no no. No fucking way, I _refuse_ ” Tommy argued, pointing his finger at Tubbo’s chest.

“C’mon, it’s the best idea we’ve got. And who knows? Maybe it won’t be so bad”

“He’s not even gonna wanna _talk_ to us! We’ll be dead before we say anything!”

“And if we’re not?”

A beat of silence flourishes between the two before Tommy lets out a defeated sign.

“Okay. _Okay_ , fine. Whatever. Just don’t blame me when we end up dead on his doorstep” he grumbled.

“I’ll remember that” Tubbo smiled sweetly.


	6. Reunions Suck And So Do Politics

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> low key hate last chapter but we vibing so who cares  
> I’ve got the chapters mostly planned out til chapter 10, which is when I’ll be taking a day or two to plan for the future.  
> Anyway, hope you guys enjoy!

“I can’t believe you talked me into this” Tommy grumbled, pulling his cloak together as they stumbled through the snowy tundra.

“Technically I didn’t talk you into anything. You convinced yourself” Tubbo replied smartly.

“Yeah, but I’m not above turning around right now and just heading back. For all we know, this is suicide”

“Maybe, but I’ve got a good feeling about this time. And besides, we  _ do  _ need his help” 

“We need  _ someone’s  _ help. We don’t specifically need  _ his  _ help” 

“But aren’t you like...brothers? Aren’t you supposed to help each other out?”

Tommy didn’t reply, deciding to take that question as incentive to focus on not getting themselves lost. They’d been walking for what felt like forever, and the light snow which had begun dusting the ground was already threatening to pick up the pace. If that happened, it’d be nearly impossible to find their way back, much less their way forward-

_ The blizzard was relented, battering down on Tommy’s already frozen figure. He did his best not to focus on the biting cold, the smell of gunpowder on his pathetically ruined clothes, the tears beginning to form on the prick of his eyes, the hunger clawing at his stomach.  _

_ Keep moving. Go forward. Find something.  _

_ Don’t look back. _

_ For the love of God, don’t look back. _

_ His foot caught something, sending him tumbling down into the freezing snow. He slowly picked himself up, his teeth surely breaking from how much they were chattering. He could barely move his fingers anymore as he stumbled to lean against a nearby tree, the leaves dead and cold on the ice that surrounded its trunk. He slinked down to rest at the bottom of the tree, clutching his cracking fingers to his chest as he shut his eyes and began to beg the world for some sort of salvation- _

“Tommy, did you hear me?” Tubbo’s voice came booming, breaking Tommy’s concentration as he lifted his head up in a snap.

“W-what?”

“What happened? You were like...gone”

“Nothing-nothing. I’m fine”

“You don't  _ look  _ fine” 

Tommy scowled, feeling the usual stubborn anger rising in his chest. “You don’t look great either, dickhead. What’d you say?”

“I’m serious when I say you don’t look fine” Tubbo replied, his voice teeming with worry.

“And  _ I’m  _ serious when I  _ say  _ I’m fine. What’d. You. Say?” Tommy snapped, immediately regretting raising his voice when Tubbo visibly flinched. 

“Alright, well…I said we’re here” 

Tommy looked up, searching the horizon before settling his eyes on the cozy cabin nesting in an upcoming field. A horse was tied to a stable attached to the house, lazily snacking on some hay and paying Tommy and Tubbo no mind as they approached the house. Smoke billowed out from a chimney, indicating that someone was home. A second house stood nearby it, smaller than the first one but just as comfortable-looking.

_ That’s new _ , Tommy thought, squinting suspiciously at the second house.  _ Wonder who lives there?  _

Tubbo reached the top of the steps before Tommy, turning around to wait for his friend.

“What’s wrong?” Tommy asked, catching up quickly. “Knock or something”

“Uh...you do it” Tubbo said sheepishly, taking a step back from the door. 

“Me?! Why me? He hates me!”

“You’re brothers, right?”

“Still hates me”

“Well…uh…I-I used to be a president. He hates the government more, right?”

Tommy opened his mouth to reply, closing it slowly as he realized (begrudgingly) that Tubbo had a point. He grumbled a ‘fuck you’ before turning back towards the door and taking a deep breath, trying to calm himself down as he reached a hand towards the door to knock. 

_ It’s been a while. He probably forgot. _

_ He never forgot anything before. _

_ He probably forgave me already. _

_ You betrayed him and stole his axe. And never gave it back. _

_ We’re brothers!  _

_ That didn’t stop him before. _

Tommy argued with himself to no end as he reached towards the door, trying his best to squash down every instinct that told him to flee, to run away as fast as he could and never look back. It was a stupid note from an even stupider guy. It probably didn’t even mean anything. Why was he risking his life-  _ Tubbo’s life - _ for such a stupid reason?

No. He wanted answers. He could  _ get  _ answers. All he had to do was knock.

…

Christ, was his hand  _ shaking _ ? 

Tommy reached his other arm up, steadying his hand and taking another breath. He clenched his teeth, cursed Dream out internally for the tenth time today, and knocked three times.

There was silence for a few moments as they waited for a response, Tommy praying to every god he could remember from Phil’s stupid lessons as he begged no one would answer. 

Then, the door creaked open just a tad, and a crimson-colored eye hidden behind a pig’s mask peered out of the crack. 

“Uh...hi, Techno” Tommy said nervously, giving a tiny smile and holding up a hand in what he hoped would be seen as a friendly gesture. 

The eye regarded him for a few moments of deafening silence, glancing between him and Tubbo, the only sound being Tommy’s shaky breath and the wind which stirred up the snow on the rooftop.

Then, in the blink of an eye, the door was slammed open and a crossbow loaded with a firework was pointed directly at Tommy’s chest. 

“You have  _ some fucking nerve  _ coming back here, Tommy” Techno growled, his pig mask failing to hide the glare of  _ absolute rage  _ he was giving his younger brother. 

“Woah, woah, woah! Big T, chill!” Tommy shouted, instincts taking over as he threw his hands up in surrender.

“That’s it! We’re dead! I’m out!” Tubbo yelled, a foot over Techno’s railing like he was about to jump. 

“Techno, what are you doing? Stop!” 

A hand was placed on Techno’s shoulder, apparently belonging to the voice that had just spoken. Techno faltered, loosening the finger he held on the trigger but refusing to take his eyes off of Tommy. 

Tommy leaned ever so slightly, trying to see who the voice belonged to.

Philza, his father, looked back, that same gentle gaze that had once helped destroy L’Manburg meeting Tommy’s eyes. 

Tommy swallowed, keeping his hands up as he struggled to tear his eyes away from his father’s to glance back at Tubbo. His friend had stopped trying to jump the railing and was now trying (and failing) to make himself seem more intimidating by standing up straight and clenching his fists. 

“Not gonna happen, Phil. I’m done with this brat and his tyrant of a friend” Techno hissed lowly in response, tightening his grip on his crossbow. 

“Put the crossbow down, Techno, you’re scaring him” Phil replied calmly, carefully placing a hand on top of Techno’s weapon and gingerly lowering it for him. 

“ _ Scaring him?! _ ”

“Well...I mean...you kinda are” Tommy said quietly, slowly lowering his hands. 

“ _ Scaring  _ you is the  _ least  _ I should do. If Phil wasn’t here, Tommy, I’d shove this crossbow into your neck and watch you choke on your own blood” Techno threatened, narrowing his eyes. 

“Well, I’m sure you could try-” Tommy started to say, being cut off by Phil raising a hand. 

“Why are you here, Tommy?” His father said coldly, his warm gaze being replaced by one of suspicion.

“We...uh...need a favor” Tubbo interjected shyly, shifting his weight from foot to foot. 

“Just a tiny one. Itty bitty. Smaller then like...an ant. Just really small” Tommy added, smiling nervously. 

Techno visibly tensed from rage, his teeth threatening to crack as he clenched them together. Phil noticed, stepping between his eldest son and his youngest, and folding his arms.

“What makes you think Techno would want to help you?” He asked, narrowing his eyes. 

“Uh...fam...il...y?” Tommy replied slowly, like he was trying to explain the word to a child.

“I’m done helping you Tommy. Get out of here before Phil can’t stop me anymore” Techno growled over Phil’s shoulder. 

“C’mon, Big T. We’re family. Bros. Brothers. Amigos. Uh...Tubbo what’s Spanish for family?”

“I think it’s Familiar”

“Right, yeah. We’re familiar, Techno. The familiarest” 

Techno took a threatening step forward, being stopped by Phil placing a hand on his chest. 

“What’s the favor, Tommy? Maybe someone else can help you” Phil asked, taking the crossbow out of Techno’s hands and setting it on a table nearby. 

“Long story short, I got a note from Dream and have no idea what to do about it” Tommy answered blatantly, taking the yellow paper out of his pocket and handing it over to his father. 

Phil unfolded the paper and began to read it, Techno reading it alongside him over his shoulder. Their expressions shifted simultaneously, annoyed frowns turning to dark concern.

“Come inside, Tommy. We need to talk” Phil ordered sturdily, shoving Techno gently out of the way and indicating for his youngest son to step inside. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tommy Trauma Pog???  
> ...  
> no. it’s not pog.  
> I might hardcore stan DSMP! Dream but he still a bitch.


	7. A ‘Calm’ Discussion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao sorry for taking so long with this chapter guys, i might’ve forgotten about the whole fic for a while xd.  
> Anyway, I’m back, and I promise not to forget again!  
> Maybe

If there was one thing Tommy admired about Techno’s house, it was how tidy it was.

Seriously. Even when Tommy had blindly stumbled into the basement, half-dead and frost bitten to hell and back, he had mentally noted just how _clean_ everything was. 

The chests along the wall, organized to perfection (by Phil, sure, but still organized). The chandelier flickering cheerfully from above, lighting the entire room. The potions, neatly arranged against the window as the brewing stand that created them burned blaze powder to keep itself running. The paintings on the wall, depicting propaganda after propaganda while still being beautiful-

_The crate in the corner of the room, the nails still stained in Tommy’s blood from when he had scrapped his shoulder from pressed himself inside with Dream entering the room seconds later on those terrifying footsteps only inches away-_

Tommy shook his head, forcing the memory down as he kicked the snow off his boots and stepped inside. The warm air, in stark contrast to the chilling winds from outside, soothed him almost instantly as he relaxed his muscles.

Well, he relaxed them as much as he could. It was hard to completely relax when there was a 6-foot murdering anarchist who hated his guts sitting a foot away, right next to the father who had all but disowned him. 

They were sitting around Techno’s dining table, which wasn’t big enough for the four people that were trying to sit at it. Tommy sat across from Techno, hands intertwined in his lap as he tried not to bounce his leg anxiously. Tubbo was a couple feet behind him, leaning against the wall and keeping watch over the whole situation. It was comforting to have him here; Tommy didn’t know if he would’ve even made it across the tundra if it wasn’t for his best friend. 

Phil was standing behind Techno, a hand on Techno’s chair like he was holding his son back. Tommy wasn’t surprised Phil was here; he’d heard Phil had moved in with Techno a while back, and it wasn’t like he’d just...get up and leave. 

Like he’d done before.

As much as Tommy wanted to hate his father, he couldn’t bring himself to. He had come back, after all. He had tried to help Wilbur, even if he had failed and taken his life. He has (probably) just saved his life from Techno’s wrath. He was, at _least_ , trying to fix the problems that had happened when he left

But he _had_ left. He _had_ abandoned his family. 

And try as he might, Tommy just...couldn’t forgive that.

He could feel himself getting angrier just thinking about everything that had happened, everything his father had done or had failed to do, and pushed it aside. Tommy could be mad at Phil later. Right now he needed answers, and he was gonna get them.

Tommy cleared his throat, breaking the silence that had fallen upon the room and bringing all eyes to him. 

“So,” He said slowly, trying to ignore the death glare Techno was giving him as Tommy made eye-contact with Phil. “You said we needed to talk”

“Yeah” Phil agreed. “Yeah, we do”

“Then start talking. You know something, don’t you? The both of you?” Tommy urged, kneading his hands together nervously. 

Techno scoffed, crossing his legs. “ _Phil_ knows more about this stuff than I do. He’s the one obsessed with that occult stuff”

“It’s not ‘occult stuff’. It’s-”

“Phil, if it has to do with demons, it’s occult”

“Do you even _know_ what occult means?”

“Probably more than you do”

“Guys, stop. Seriously. I didn’t risk my ass coming back here to listen to you guys arguing over…” Tommy trailed, off processing what had just been said. “I-I’m sorry, did you say _demons?_ ”

Phil opened his mouth to reply, being cut off by Techno who had apparently decided to take over this conversation. 

“Yes, demons. The red ones with horns and pointy sticks? The ones Phil used to tell you stories about until it gave you nightmares?”

“You had nightmares about demons?” Tubbo asked Tommy innocently. 

“Yeah, when I was like...a _kid_ kid” Tommy replied, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. 

“So you’re still having them?”

“Shut the fuck _up,_ Tubbo”

Phil chuckled under his breath, releasing his grip on Techno’s chair and folding his arms. Tommy noticed a hint of sadness in his eyes, like whatever he had to say was so damning, so revolting, even Tommy’s banter with Tubbo couldn’t cheer him up.

Well, that wasn’t good. Tommy’s whole thing was cheering people up. If even _he_ couldn’t cheer Phil up...was he losing his touch, or was whatever Phil had to say so terrible nothing could make him happy?

“Anyway,” Phil started. “Yeah. Demons. And from what it sounds like, a pretty strong one, too”

“When you say demons,” Tubbo asked. “Do you mean actual demons, or Dreamons?”

“Wouldn’t you know better than anyone?” Techno snapped. “Don’t you belong to a group called the Dreamon Hunters? Or did you give that up for the Butcher Army?” 

“Techno…” Phil warned, placing a hand on his son’s shoulder. 

“No, it’s alright, Phil. It’s a fair question,” Tubbo sighed, leaning his head back against the wall. 

“To answer it Techno...I really don’t know what’s going on with the Hunters lately. We had one hurrah for Dream, but after that we kinda split off to form the Butcher Army”

“You’d still know the difference between a demon and a Dreamon right? You couldn’t have been _that_ terrible at it, were you?”

“Techno” Phil said louder, tightening his grip on Techno’s shoulder.

“There really isn’t that much of a difference,” Tubbo continued. “Other than Dreamons being more likely to drive their hosts to...um...extreme measures, they’re exactly the same”

“Why are Dreamons more likely to drive their hosts crazy?” Tommy asked, genuinely curious.

“Why don’t you ask one and find out?” Techno suggested cruelly. “Maybe they’ll convince you to take a swan dive off a cliff” 

“Techno, I swear-” Phil started, being cut off by Techno standing up quickly enough to knock over the chair he was sitting on and shake the table. The pig-masked warrior pointed a finger threatening at Phil’s chest, anger dripping from his voice when he spoke.

“I know Tommy’s your favorite, Phil, but if you think your whole ‘found family’ shit is gonna protect him from what happens next, you’re wrong. You’re wrong, Phil. And I swear on the Sun he’s gonna pay for it one day”

And with that, Techno walked out of the house and slammed the door behind him.

Tommy hadn’t even noticed he was holding his breath until Techno left, relief washing over him like water to a house fire. 

“So,” He started to say slowly. “I guess I’m not winning any ‘Brother of the Year’ awards from Techno anytime soon”

Phil rubbed the back of his neck, sighing dramatically. “Yeah, I…I’m sorry about that. I tried talking to him, but he hasn’t forgiven you for...fucking him over and stealing his axe”

“That was like...four weeks ago!” Tommy protested. “I forgave him for executing Tubbo, but he can’t forgive me for...what, yelling at him?”

“Did you really forgive him for killing Tubbo, or are you just saying that to make him feel guilty?”

“I...uh…”

Phil raised a hand for silence, guilt mixed with annoyance plastered all over his face. “Let’s deal with Techno, _together_ , after we deal with Dream”

“How do we know any of this is even real?” Tubbo asked. “What if this is another Dream trick to try and get free?”

“I don’t know if it’s a trick or not, but considering Dream gave the note to Tommy instead of Sapnap, George, or _anyone_ who’d be more likely to fall for it, it’s more likely he meant it” Phil concluded, fixing Techno’s knocked-over chair and sitting in it. “Dream’s smart. He knows Tommy is the most likely person to be suspicious about anything he says. It’d be stupid to give the _one chance_ he had at freedom to his greatest enemy”

“I wouldn’t say I’m his _greatest_ enemy…” Tommy started to say.

“You’re right. You’re his most _annoying_ enemy” Tubbo said cheerfully, pushing himself off the wall and stepping closer to the table. 

“Whatever you wanna call it, Dream doesn’t like you,” Phil continued. “Giving you any sort of leverage over him isn’t smart, and Dream’s not known for being an idiot”

“So, why’d he give it to me, Phil?” Tommy asked quizzically, the answers he’s been seeking so tantalizingly close. 

“Because you’re the least likely person to be given it” 

Tommy fell silent, raising an eyebrow and turning towards Tubbo, looking equally as confused. 

“So...he gave it to me because he would never give it to me?” Tommy said slowly, processing what Phil said.

“Yeah, exactly. It’s kinda brilliant when you think about it” Phil nodded. 

“But...why? What’s the point?” Tubbo asked. 

“To fool it, probably” 

“There’s that ‘it’ again. What, exactly _is_ it? You’ve been avoiding talking about it this whole time? Is it a demon or not?” Tommy shouted, standing up quickly. 

“Sit down, Tommy. You’re stressing me out” Phil replied calmly, crossing his legs and folding his arms. 

“Oh, _you’re_ stressed out? I have no idea what’s happening, and you’re not telling me!”

“I’m _going to._ When you calm down” 

Tommy sat back down with a huff, folding his arms and scowling like an angry toddler. 

Phil sighed, blinking slowly and taking a deep breath as he began to speak.

“It was...ten or so years ago. You were probably too young to remember this, so I don’t expect you to know this story. Back when we first arrived here- we being Wilbur, Techno, you, and I- we lived about fifty clicks south of here. Like normal, I did my best building us a place to live while Wilbur and Techno would play in the woods for hours on end. I didn’t like it; that forest felt...wrong to me. Of course, being kids, they didn’t really listen, but I still did my best to stop them from going in.

One day, Wilbur came bursting in the door sobbing and crying like he’d lost a limb or something. He looked fine, so I asked him what was wrong. He told me he and Techno had, obviously, been playing in the woods. Techno had apparently heard a voice or something and had ran off, and Wilbur didn’t like to be left alone. So I scolded him for playing in the woods, picked up my pickaxe, and went off to find my other son. 

I was right to be apprehensive about those woods. It was so dark in there, despite the sun being right overhead. And it was so...quiet. No birds, no squirrels, not even a damn mouse. The lack of animals was ominous enough, but the trees and plants were probably the worst part. Most of them were dead, while the ones that weren’t seemed to go out of their way to trip me up and get me lost. I had to redirect myself four times before I found some sort of landmark. 

Honestly, the fact that I hadn’t seen that thing before confuses me still, because it was _massive_. Huge, spiraling jagged stones in the vague shape of a tree that reached so far into the sky it cut the clouds. I had never seen anything like it before. It was...beautiful.

I spotted Techno inside of that damn thing. He was curled up inside the trunk, sobbing and talking to himself. It didn’t take me very long to figure out he wasn’t doing well, so I called out to him and rushed over. He didn’t seem to hear me, but I kept trying anyway. When I actually _got_ to the tree, I noticed two very bad things.

One, the hole I assumed Techno had crawled through to get into the tree was too small for me.

And two, that hole was fast closing.

Thank the gods I had brought my pickaxe with me, because I’m not sure I could’ve gotten Techno out of that thing without it. Even after I plucked him out of that thing, he wouldn’t respond to me. I still have no idea how he got in there; Techno refuses to talk about it, though I can’t tell if it’s because he can’t remember or if it’s just...too troubling.

That marble tree was gone the next day, but the bits of rock I’d chipped off were still embedded in the ground, so I can only imagine it teleported away or it grew legs and walked off. Either way, Techno and Wilbur stopped going into those woods after that, and we moved house after that”

Tommy and Tubbo were quiet for a few moments, processing what Phil had just said.

“So…” Tommy started. “Is that around when Techno started hearing his-”

“Voices?” Phil finished. “Yeah, and I’ve gotta assume he got them from that tree”

“And you think this has to do with...whatever’s going on with Dream?” Tubbo asked.

“Not the incident, but it _does_ prove that there is something around here that isn’t human” Phil responded. “So, at the very least, if Dream _is_ faking it, he most likely knows it exists and is working with it”

“Dream’s always been kind of a dick, but I don’t think he’d work with the incarnation of Satan” Tommy said, pronouncing ‘Satan’ as ‘Satin’. 

“Then the only alternative is that that note is legit, and Dream’s playing host to the incarnation of _Satan_ ” Phil concluded, putting emphasis on Satan in an effort to help Tommy pronounce it better. 

Tubbo shook his head, slamming his hands on his thighs in annoyance. “Okay, then what do we _do?_ ” 

Suddenly, the house began to shake violently, knocking Tommy out of his chair and sending Tubbo crashing into one of Techno’s chests. Phil, ever the stable person, sturdied himself before he fell and managed to catch the brewing stand as it fell off the wall. 

The quake was over almost as quick as it had begun, but the normally tidy house was in complete disarray. 

“I think,” Phil said slowly, setting the brewing stand back on the windowsill. “You should start by getting back home” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> quake n bake  
> ...  
> wait


	8. Sometimes It’s Best To Forget

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: Did you like my latest chapter? I tossed in some Tommy & Tubbo angst because I felt like it  
> Friend: Wdym? You haven’t updated in like...three days  
> Me:
> 
> (ya turns out I didn’t hit the gosh darn ‘post’ button >:( )

Normally, Tommy liked walking.

Walking was nice. Walking was peaceful. 

Walking wasn’t supposed to feel like sitting on top of a washing machine while riding a bull. 

Tommy toppled over himself as another tremor started, almost face-planting into a nearby tree as he tried to catch himself. He and Tubbo had been walking for the better part of an hour, but they were still a far way off from the main server; each time they picked up a stride, a tremor would start and break any concentration they had. It was almost like the earthquakes were getting worse the farther they got from Techno’s cabin

“This sucks” Tommy grumbled, flicking a piece of mud off his face as he stood back up. His outfit was in total shambles, his iconic red-and-white t-shirt stained a dark brown from the constant falls. 

“You’re telling me. We’re not even halfway there yet, and we’ve been at this for like...ever!” Tubbo complained, despite his clothing being in a much better state then Tommy’s. 

“And we don’t even know what’s  _ happening, _ ” Tommy added. “I thought we built everything in this area because there were  _ no  _ earthquakes!”

“I know, I know! This shouldn’t be happening, nothing makes sense, and we don’t know jack! Tell me something new that  _ doesn’t  _ suck!” 

Tommy knew better than to answer Tubbo; in one of the few instances where he got mad like this, keeping quiet and letting him simmer down was the best option.

Even if he did feel the exact same way. 

The pair stood up quickly as the tremor slowed down to a halt, determined to make progress before another one started again. Tommy huffed, tugging his axe out of its hilt and chopping off the branch of the tree he had fallen against. 

“I’m not stopping next time the world decides to Cha Cha Slide” He announced, using the branch as a cane as he kept pace with Tubbo.

“You better, or you’ll be sliding to the left  _ and  _ the right. If we’re gonna get to the bottom of this, we can’t get ourselves hurt so bad we can’t move” Tubbo pointed out, making a surprisingly good point despite the anger still radiating off of him.

“Is that why you’re not rushing ahead? Because you don’t wanna get hurt?”

“As much as I really, really,  _ really  _ don’t like being stuck all the way out here while god knows what happens to our friends, as long as we’re okay, we can help them. And…” Tubbo trailed off, holding his hands out as he leaped up and balanced on a fallen log. 

“And?” Tommy prodded, tapping the log with his branch-cane.

“And...we needed time to think”

“Think about what? We got the answers we wanted, didn’t we?”

“We got like...the rough draft of an outline. They sucked”

“I thought Techno was the English major”

“You know what I mean. All we got were ‘maybes’ and ‘mights’. Nothing solid. Nothing concrete. Theories and hypothesissies don’t do anything for us other than leave us even  _ more  _ confused” Tubbo sighed, pronouncing ‘hypotheses’ as ‘hypothe-sissies’.

“Yeah, I know what you mean, but it’s better then nothing, right? At least we have a vague idea of what we’re up against” Tommy admitted. 

“We don’t even know if we’re up against anything at all. This could just be a stupid prank from Dream, or some attempt at confusing us into letting him go. All of this could be for  _ nothing _ . We could be playing right into his hands again”

“Then let’s go visit him”

“But what if the note’s real? What if there really  _ is  _ something demonic holding onto him? We’d just be helping it!”

“Then let’s just leave him alo-”

“But what if that’s what Dream wants, and he wrote that note to throw us off his trail? He could’ve not wanted anyone to visit him so nobody’d know when he escaped!”

“Tubbo!” Tommy interjected, stopping his stride and putting a hand on his friend’s shoulders. “Calm down. Take a deep breath. Christ, I can’t believe  _ I’m  _ the one trying to get you to chill. I’ve been all over the place today with these new personality traits. Character development, am I right?”

“But what do we do, Tommy? We have no idea what’s true and what’s not, we have no idea what we’re supposed to do even if it  _ is  _ true. We’re fucked! We-”

“Language”

“What?”

“Watch the swearing. This is a family friendly mental breakdown, isn’t it?”

“Since when do you-”

“Since you’re so busy freaking out you might pass out from a lack of air” Tommy grabbed Tubbo’s hand gently, trying to keep it from shaking. “Breathe with me, okay? In, two, three. Out, two, three. In, two, three. Out, two, three. Alright? You still with me?”

Tubbo nodded slowly, following the breathing pattern Tommy had shown him. It was helping to some extent, though Tommy could sense his friend was still panicking. 

“Focus on the present, not the future, okay? Let’s just get back home before we figure anything else out. And we’ll figure it out together, alright? I’m not leaving” Tommy whispered, pulling his friend into a hug. When was the last time he had hugged him? Months, maybe. Probably before-

_ Tommy felt Dream’s hand shoving him forward, pushing him away and away from everyone and everything he had known. Where was he going? What was happening?  _

_ Exile. That’s what Tubbo had called it. Exile from his family and friends and- _

_ And Tubbo. _

_ Tubbo had done this _

_ That can’t be right. Tubbo was his friend, his best friend! They were meant to be together forever!  _

_ Then why had he done this? Why had he exiled him? Why did he let Dream win? _

_ Could he really trust Tubbo anymore? _

_ “Keep moving” Dream gruffed behind him, his axe tantalizingly close to Tommy’s back. _

_ Right. That’s what Tommy did best. Keep moving. Keep breathing. _

_ In, two, three. Out, two, three. In, two, three. Out, two, three.  _

_ In, two, three. Out, two, three. In, two, three. Out, two, three.  _

_ In- _

“I’m not sure I like this comforting side of you. It’s weirdly...calm” Tubbo muttered into Tommy’s shoulder, snapping him out of his flashback and bringing him back to the present. He sighed, hugging Tubbo tighter as he hoped his best friend didn’t feel him shuddering. 

“I can be calm! Calm  _ and  _ peaceful!”

“He says, while shouting at the top of his lungs”

“Oh my god, get off me right now”

Tubbo chuckled, pulling himself off Tommy and wiping a tear from his eye. 

“Thanks, Tommy. I needed that”

“Don’t worry about it, Big T. Sometimes people just need to let it all out, y’know?” Tommy nodded, picking up his makeshift cane. “You ready to go?”

“Yeah, I’m ready. Let’s get moving before the world picks another 2000s song to pop, lock, and drop it to” Tubbo remarked. 

Tubbo had only begun to walk again before another earthquake hit, upsetting his balance and sending him careening into a large puddle of dark brown mud. He stood up carefully, practically clinging to that same fallen log as he pulled himself up. Unfortunately the log was not rooted into the forest floor, and Tubbo’s weight shifted the log and caused it to roll away, sending him crashing back into that same mud puddle and absolutely ruining his outfit. Tommy, who had managed to stabilize himself with his branch, was laughing just as hard as the world was shaking. 

_ At least Tubbo still a dork,  _ Tommy thought to himself, leaving his best friend to struggle to stand as he walked past via his cane.  _ Even if we’re not sure what to do, we’ve got each other. _

_ I guess I was right. It really  _ **_will_ ** _ be me and Tubbo verses Dream. _


	9. Ash Raised Is Ash Lost

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao remember when I said I wouldn’t forget about it again  
> psyche

“Out of everyone,” Dream sneered. “I didn’t expect to see _you_ here. Come to beg for forgiveness?”

“You can drop it with the ‘scary’ act. You’re not threatening anyone” Sapnap retorted. “Especially not me. Did you really think I’d crawl back to you and just...give in? After everything you did?”

“I _expected_ you wouldn’t turn traitor. I _expected_ you cared more about your friends than yourself. I _didn’t_ expect you’d sell yourself out in a matter of moments” Dream growled lowly, shifting on his heels. It was true, however. He really hadn’t expected Sapnap to be amongst his persecutors, much less visiting him. He’d assumed his relationship with George and Sapnap had been broken the day they had shoved him in here.

Not like he was complaining, though. It was easier for everyone if they just hated him.

“ **Y’know, this reminds me of that joke with the two folks pointing at each other. On one hand, we’ve got a backstabbing filthy traitor, and on the other we have a pathetic excuse for a puppet** ” It jeered from behind Dream, leaning against the wall and fiddling with the strings on it’s hoodie. **Ask him why he’s here; I don’t feel like messing around today** ”

_I was getting to that,_ Dream thought back, trying to keep himself calm.

“Why’d you show up, then? If you hate me that much, why aren’t you frolicking in the fields with George enjoying your freedom?” Dream asked, filling his voice with as much cruelty and malice as his heart could handle. 

“Oh, we did. We spent _days_ celebrating your failure. Literal _weeks_ of nothing but enjoying a world without you, and I’d rather get back to that” Sapnap hissed, his eyes glimmering with hate.

“Then why don’t you? I’m certainly not stopping you. Even the goddamn Elder Guardians are more fun to talk to”

“I need to ask you a question”

“If you’re going to ask for an apology, you can shove your question up your ass”

“Guess even prison time can’t fix that vulgar mouth of yours” Sapnap snarled, taking a threatening step forward. “Shut up and listen for a moment”

Dream huffed and fell silent, giving in to it’s desire to hear what Sapnap had to say. He wondered internally how George was doing, but chose not to voice his question.

Sapnap strode over to the lectern, turning through the pages lazily. There was a beat of silence between the two, and even Dream was getting fed up with this long-con game Sapnap was playing.

“Things have been a lot better since we beat you, Dream” Sapnap pointed out, turning his back on his former friend and picking up the book from the lectern.

“I’m sure they have been” Dream nodded, and it was true. Dream was damn confident everything was better. He was sure everyone was living their best lives, being happy with who they were and finally breathing free air.

Even if they never knew the truth. Even if they hated him, Dream knew he’d done the right thing. He’d saved them all, and they would kill him if they could. 

“Can you get on with your stupid question? You’re interrupting my day with your little guilt-fest” Dream grumbled, tearing the book out of Sapnap’s hand and resting it back on the lectern. The book wasn’t anything special, just a bunch of words and sentences Dream had been writing to make sure he didn’t forget how to read or write. Even if he was stuck here forever, tortured for eternity by an ancient entity, he at least wanted to write a memoir one day. 

“Grown tired of me already? I thought you’d like my company”

“Gag me. You’re like a gnat I can’t swat. Ask me your question and get out of my goddamn cell” Dream demanded, sensing it’s boredom the longer Sapnap dragged this out.

Dream really didn’t want a repeat of what happened last time someone had come to visit him. Tommy’s blood was still clotted on the floor, and Sapnap had picked that exact spot to stand in when he’d first walked in here. Visiting Dream and taking him on a guilt-trip was one thing, but tracking the blood of a minor who’d had his eyes ripped out? Even Dream had to admit it: his tormentor was good at this. 

“ **Aww, thank you! I don’t deserve such praise** ” It thanked, bowing to an invisible audience and gripping a golden trophy which Dream was very sure depicted Tommy being impaled on a spear made of bones. 

Sapnap swallowed hard, but Dream couldn’t tell if it was from fear or rage. “Fine, then. Whatever. Can you cut it out with the shaking?”

Dream flinched in surprise, blinking with uncertainty. “What? What shaking?”

“The earthquakes that have been steadily getting stronger? They started yesterday after Tommy went to visit you. Can you stop it? You almost knocked over Tommy’s tower” 

“Earth...quakes?” Dream asked, confused. He glanced at it, but it seemed just as confused as he was. 

“ **Don’t look at me** ,” It spoke, frowning. “ **Your dumbass runes prevent me from doing anything, remember? I couldn’t do it if I wanted to** ”

Dream wasn’t convinced whatever was happening wasn’t connected to it, but that didn’t matter now.

“Don’t lie to me, Dream. What, Tommy leaves you alone in here for the last time and you just...take it? You pressed some button and set this all into motion, didn’t you?” Sapnap accused, jabbing a finger at Dream’s chest. 

“I didn’t do anything. Find someone else to blame” Dream retorted, folding his arms. “Maybe one of the plates shifted? Did you double-check the load bearing pillars?”

“The what?”

“Were you even paying attention when George and I talked about how we set this place up?”

“Uhm…” 

Dream pinched the bridge of his nose. “Ask George about it. One of the plates must’ve come loose. Get down there and tighten it. Turn the screws to the right, you hear me? The _right_. You turn em to the left and this whole place comes crumbling down”

“Even the prison?”

“No, Sam built the prison on the only piece of solid ground we had left. I’d be fine. The rest of you would all probably be crushed to death or die from asphyxiation. Think of it like a giant avalanche” 

“Is that really why the earthquakes are happening, or is it some kind of trick?”

Dream sighed deeply. It wasn’t a completely baseless accusation, but it was annoying nonetheless. 

“You wanted to know what the earthquakes were, and I told you the most likely scenario. That’s why you’re here, right? Leave me alone” 

It reacted suddenly, but Dream couldn’t take the time to figure out what. He was too busy trying to get Sapnap to leave before it got bored and decided to start taking his friend apart.

…

_No clever remark?_ Dream asked mentally. _I take back what I said about being ‘good at this’_

It didn’t respond, which only made Dream worry more. 

“Fine,” Sapnap snapped, jutting Dream out of his pondering. “I’ll leave if that’s what you want. But if you’re lying about the damn plates, I’m gonna break your teeth. Understand?”

“I’m sure you could try,” Dream said. “But I’m not lying. Go tighten the ‘damn plates’ and fuck off. Thank you”

Sapnap cursed under his breath, and for a split moment Dream thought his former friend would take a swing at him. 

It wasn’t that Dream was afraid of what Sapnap would do. 

No, he was afraid of what _he_ would do. 

Or rather, he was afraid of what it would _make_ him do.

Luckily, Sapnap slumped his shoulders and turned back towards the lava-fall, shouting for the warden. Dream allowed himself a moment of relaxation, a rare find considering his...condition. With Sapnap gone, he could go back to doing what he did best: wallowing in agony as he felt the consequences of his actions. Just a regular afternoon for Dream the Walking Talking Demonic Host.

Dream sighed as he listened to the pistons lead Sapnap away, leaning against the wall next to his clock on his forearm. 

He wondered internally if Sapnap and George would ever forgive him for the things he’d done. Are there even things to forgive? Could he be held responsible for actions he’d never wanted to take, but had taken anyway? How would they achieve justice, even if they decided Dream _wasn’t_ to blame? Would they stuff it back inside of his body and toss him back in here, with the living conditions being raised from Inhumane to Minimum Wage Job? 

Things wouldn’t just go back to normal; thinking like that would just get his hopes up. Even if hope was all Dream had left, he had to be careful with it. Too much and he’d be disappointed, too little and he’d snap. 

A part of him wondered if he’d snapped already. Maybe it wasn’t even real. Maybe it was just his mind creating something to blame, so he didn’t have to feel any guilt as he mangled the people around him. 

Well, _that_ clearly wasn’t working. All Dream could _feel_ was guilt. 

Guilt for stealing almost everything he’d owned. 

Guilt for terrifying his closest friends.

Guilt for helping it with Ranboo.

Guilt for Tommy.

Guilt for…

_Ok, now you’re starting to scare me. All this self-sacrificing angsty thoughts, and I don’t even get a scoff?_ Dream thought at it, trying to elicit a response. _Did Sapnap startle you so badly you finally shut yourself up?_

Still silence.

_Seriously, this is weird. You’ve been stuck on me for like...six months, and this is the longest you’ve been quiet for. What the hell happened?_

Nothing. Not even a blink in his direction.

Dream turned away from the wall, placing his palm on it as he looked at it. It didn’t even glance in his direction, seemingly lost in thought. 

_That’s new_ . Dream tried again. _I didn’t know you could think about anything so deeply. What, wondering what next horrible vision to give me? What new scar to inflict upon me? What new sound you should tear apart my ears with?_

“ **I thought you would’ve liked me quiet. It’s what you’ve been begging for this whole time, hasn’t it?** ”

Dream stifled his huff of relief; he didn’t need to give it that sense of satisfaction. At least it was talking to him again.

_Begging is a strong word. Why don’t we use ‘politely asking for some peace and quiet’?_

That last thought had been more disrespectful then Dream had meant it to be, and he was half expecting it to break one of his fingers to teach him a lesson.

Instead, it responded by falling deathly quiet again, staring off into space. 

Dream chuffed and turned away again, fiddling with the hands on his clock. 

There was a muted silence between the two for what seemed like forever. Dream couldn’t tell; he’d accidentally broken his clock and was trying desperately to fix it. He’d probably have to ask Sam to restart it for him, but Dream didn’t want to give it any ammunition to use against him. 

Dream had mixed feelings about his warden. On one hand, he was relieved his caretaker wasn’t as involved as he probably should be. Isolation was torture by itself, sure, but Dream felt watching the warden tear himself to pieces was a bit much.

On the other hand, deep, deep, _deep_ down, Dream wished Sam would spend time with him more. He wished Sam could tell something was wrong; that he’d finally see nothing was Dream’s fault. 

_But it is your fault_ , Dream argued with himself. _You let it in. You brought it out. You gave it a host. All of this is your fault._

_I didn’t mean for this to happen! I didn’t mean for any of this to happen!_

_And yet it still happened because of you. Quit denying it; it’s repulsive_

“ **If I’d known you depended on me so much to prevent internal warfare, I’d have kept quiet this whole time. What, need a scapegoat to point fingers at?** ”

Ah, there it was. Dream has begun to worry again. 

_It gets you to respond, doesn’t it? What’s with the silent treatment?_ Dream asked, letting go of his clock and turning back towards it.

He blinked a few times. Did it seem less...transparent? 

He was probably just losing it. 

“ **I’m thinking** ”

_Thinking? About what?_

“ **What tool to smash your skull in with. Why the hell would I tell you?** ”

Dream shrugged. _Just thought you’d like to talk about it, s’ all._

It scoffed, glaring at him with those black eyes. “ **What, are we gonna have a little circle talk and discuss our feelings? Hug it out in the end? Braid each other’s goddamn hair?** ”

_What’s with you today? Where’s the sarcastic asshole who’d snap my forearm the moment I made any signs of rebellion? You really just gonna let me talk to you like that?_

“ **Are ya that desperate for human contact that you’d ask me to break something? Lucifer, Dream, you really are a joke** ” 

Dream scowled, letting the insult roll off his shoulders. Why _hadn’t_ it hurt him yet? Why hadn’t he watched as the flesh melted off Sapnap’s bones? What was it thinking about? 

“ **Oh, for the love of...fine. You really wanna know that badly?** ”

_Not badly badly, but it’d still be nice to know._

“ **Not if I’m right about this…** ”

Dream raised an eyebrow. It rolled it’s eyes and gruffed, folding it’s arms and averting it’s gaze. 

“ **You asked Sam to scribe the locking runes into the prison. That’s why I can’t get outta here, right?** ”

_Yeah, what about it?_

“ **Where’d he put them?** ”

_Put...them?_

“ **He had to pick a place to tack em on, right? Where was that?** ”

_How the hell am I supposed to know? He probably nestled them here in the cell somewhere._

“ **Are you sure?** ” 

Dream threw his hands up in frustration, clenching his jaw. _What the hell does this have to do with anything? It’s not like you can break them; you said yourself the runes prevent you from doing anything demonic_

A devilish grin spread across it’s face, splitting it’s flesh apart at the corners and staining it’s teeth with it’s own blood.

“ **No way. No fucking way, it didn’t. It...it...it did!** ” It squealed excitedly, bouncing around and giggling. “ **That fucker really put his pride over reason and went right to work! Oh, this is gonna be great!** ”

Dream’s guard was, naturally, as ready as he could get it to be. If it was this excited about something, there were very, very, _very_ high chances it wasn’t good.

“What?” Dream demanded, abandoning communication via thought in his desperation. “What happened?”

“ **A miracle! A massacre inducing, genocide based miracle! Sweet Satan below, I’ve gotta be the luckiest fucker alive!** ”

And that’s when Dream realized why it was so happy. 

He hadn’t been losing it before. It was growing solid. Ever so slowly, ever so slightly, but it was getting there. 

Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong. 

“No…” Dream said shakily, taking a fearful step backwards. “That’s-that’s not possible. The runes-”

“ **The runes were a botch job done by a guy who hates your guts. The idiot put them so far along the walls all it took was a little shaking and they came right lose!** ” It whooped, taking a running start at the wall and hanging from the roof. “ **Can you believe it? Moron had one job- just one!- and he managed to fuck it up! Can we get a ‘hell yeah’?** ” 

“Oh God, no…” Dream whimpered, pressing himself against the obsidian wall, trying to get as far away from it as possible. 

It shook it’s head, sighing. “ **Not what I was hoping for, but I’ll take it!** **Let’s get back to it, shall we?** ” 

This can’t be happening. This cannot be possibly happening. Everything he’d done, every second of torture he’d survived, and it was all broken just like that? 

It couldn’t be free. It was just messing with him. That was it, it was just playing a trick on him so he’d sink further into despair. It couldn’t possibly be- 

Dream yelped as his arm suddenly jerked without his consent, slamming itself onto his clock and shattering the glass. His hand continued to press itself into the impact, slicing Dream’s hand into ribbons as he fought the tears forming in his eyes. 

It laughed coldly, looking down at it’s palms. “ **Dunno about you, Dream, but I’m feeling pretty real right now** ” 

Dream’s wrist twisted on it’s own, the glass cutting his knuckles as he gripped his clock and pried it free from the wall. His legs forced him into movement, taking janky, broken steps as he walked towards the lava-fall. Dream tried desperately to regain control, fighting every shift of bone and bending of muscle uselessly as he marched towards his goal.

He’d expected to throw the clock into the molten rock. He did _not_ expect to directly plunge his hand into it.

White-hot searing pain shot through Dream’s hand and upper arm as he screamed, trying desperately to pull his hand back. The smell of cooked human flesh flourished in his cell, the scent almost as nauseating as the revelation he’d had only moments ago. His muscles contracted, straining between Dream’s will, it’s will, and the horrid burning pain that was now flooding his senses. Dream could practically feel his skin pop as the water in his blood pressurized to its limit, his veins unable to contain the bursting. 

It relinquished, at last, after a few minutes. Dream collapsed to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably, cradling his ruined arm. The damage had been enough to permanently disable him; even if Dream wasn’t as good with health as Philza was, being able to see the cracks in your bones was not a good thing. 

Dream had let go of the clock at some point, but he couldn’t remember when. Nevertheless, it had disappeared into the lava. Sam would be along to replace it soon enough.

“ **Yes, he will be** ” It chuckled, making short strides over to his incapacitated host. It bent down and studied Dream’s arm, sniffing at the smoldering skin and humming in content. “ **That’s what I’m betting on** ”

Dream couldn’t formulate a reply in time, his legs and remaining arm tugging him to his feet all too quickly. He found himself staring down at his broken arm, the bone threatening to crack in two along the thin fracture running on the bottom of his forearm. A part of him was almost relieved: one less limb to hurt someone else with. Even if it hurt like hell and would never stop hurting, he could still protect this world from it. He could still-

“ **That’s enough of that** ” It interrupted, waving it’s hand dismissively. “ **You’ll have time for self-sacrificing torture later. Right now, we need to get ready** ”

Get ready? Get ready for what? 

As much as Dream wanted to ponder over this new situation, to question its meaning and think about what would happen, he was much too distracted by his arm.

His arm which was miraculously putting itself back together.

Dream watched in controlled horror and wonder as the crack in his bone squeezed itself into nothingness, his muscles and skin weaving back together as if Dream’s arm was a cloth being knit by a gentle old lady. The burns and bubbles on his skin seemed to leach right out of his flesh, and it wasn’t long before his arm was in perfect working order. 

As if nothing had happened. 

“ **I can’t have you losing an arm on me, can I? That’d be boring** ” It remarked, smiling with fake warmth as Dream avoided eye-contact. “ **You can at least thank me, you know** ”

“Go to hell” Dream managed to say, his voice shaking for every other syllable. 

It clicked it’s tongue and shook it’s head. “ **I’m disappointed. Here I was, going out of my way to help you, and you insult me?** ” It clutched it’s chest in mock-surprise, pressing the back of it’s hand to it’s forehead. “ **You wound me, my darling Dreamer. Now I have to make it right** ” 

“Make it...right?”

“ **If it’s war you want, Dreamer, it’s war you’ll get. That’s what you want, right? An enemy to fight? Someone else to blame for what happens next?** ”

“What…what happens next? What do you mean?! What did you-”

Lava rising. 

Pistons.

Sam’s voice.

Sam was coming to replace his clock.

Sam was coming to replace his clock, and it was in control. 

“ **Don’t act so surprised, Dreamer** ,” It scolded, rolling Dream’s shoulder’s and dropping him into a fighting stance. “ **You know he deserved this** ” 


	10. :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prepare, friends. Things start getting real.

“Sam!” Tommy shouted, lifting his hands to the corner of his mouth so his voice would carry father. “Get your arse out here! Sam!” 

“You’ve been yelling for, like, an hour, Tommy,” Tubbo moaned, his shoulders sagging. “Give it up; he’s not gonna come”

“Yes he fucking will- Sam!” Tommy shouted again. 

Tubbo pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing like Wilbur used to every time Tommy had done something Tommyish. The pair were standing right outside the entrance to the prison; they had been passing by it, and Tommy had made the rash and spontaneous decision to talk to Dream about his note. “You’re just gonna exhaust your voice. Let’s come back tomorrow, Sam’s clearly not here today”

“Then where the hell would he be? He...like... _lives_ here, Tubbo”

“He doesn’t _live_ here, that’d be really sad. He probably had a house somewhere close by, but he doesn’t sleep in the prison”

“Oh, you’re right!” Tommy said excitedly. “Let’s go knock on his door and make him listen to us”

Tubbo caught Tommy’s wrist before he could run off. “How would that help? He’s already stingy about who sees Dream. If we bother him he probably won’t let us in for like a week”

“Pfft, please,” Tommy scoffed. “I’m like his best friend”

Tubbo raised an eyebrow.

Tommy groaned, rolling his eyes and snatching his wrist back from Tubbo. “Fine. We’re like...I dunno what we are but we’re closer than you think! I can get him to listen to me, at least”

“Uh huh. Like how Quackity listened to you when you asked him to give you his votes?”

“Oh my god, that was forever ago”

“It was three months”

“Oh look at me I’m Tubbo. I have a good sense of time and make reasonable decisions” Tommy mocked, putting his hands on his head to imitate horns. 

“Good lord, what happened to the Tommy I was talking to an hour ago? The one who suddenly went all soft and scolded me for swearing” Tubbo said exasperated, plopping himself onto the dew-soaked grass. 

“He died as soon as that conversation ended. Can’t be ‘Soft Tommy’ when we’re interrogating a war criminal over a mysterious note he left for me in a book about getting dates” Tommy answered cheerfully.

“I will build him a grave that rivals Schlatt’s” Tubbo mourned, bowing his head in sadness. “He was a great man, and an even greater friend”

“Oh come off it, you giant bi-”

“Hello!” A new voice suddenly rang across the world, chirpier and stronger than Sam’s. It felt familiar enough to Tommy that he didn’t feel at risk, but he couldn’t place a face to it. Apparently Tubbo couldn’t either, since his best friend’s slight frown and pondering expression had returned to his face like a badge of honor. 

“Sam?” Tommy asked stupidly. He knew it wasn’t Sam, the voice was different and Warden Sam never said ‘hello’ like that. But what else was he supposed to do? Pick up Tubbo like a disgruntled bride and leg it? Blush like a Japanese schoolgirl and shakily say ‘senpai’? Respond by asking who it was? 

What did he look like, a scrub? 

“No, not quite,” The voice replied, accompanied by a head poking through the swirling Nether portal. “I don’t think I can pull off that brooding sense of righteousness”

Tommy squinted, but he couldn’t make out the features of the newcomer who was talking to them. 

Tubbo, however, had apparently realized who it was, as the former president quickly stood up and began breathing cautiously. “Bad. Didn’t expect to see you here”

The red-and-black demon nodded, stepping fully out of the portal and dusting himself off. “Yeah, I know. I only started working here a couple days ago. Ant’s here too. Wanna say hi?”

Tubbo swallowed. “No, not really. We...uh...need to talk to Sam”

“Sam?” Bad asked, a slight shock in his voice. “What for?”

“We need to talk to Dream,” Tommy answered. “And to do that, we need to talk to Sam. Could you _please_ tell him to stop being a pussy and _get out here?_ I’ve been yelling for like...ever”

“It’s been an hour” Tubbo chipped in. 

“Yes, thank you, Tubbo. Very helpful”

Bad shook his head, his horned shadow catching in the swirling purple light emanating from the portal behind him. “As much as I’d like to let you in, Tommy, I can’t do that”

“What?” Tommy demanded, annoyed. “Why the fuck not!?”

“Nobody’s allowed in the prison when Sam’s talking to Dream. Even Ant and I have to stick to the lobby until he’s done. It’s one of those oddly specific security measures he made up, like the _constant shakedowns_ aren’t enough…” Bad trails off, giving an exasperated sigh. “But that’s Sam, y’know? Gotta double, triple, and quadruple check everything’s in order, otherwise he’ll put the whole kitten caboodle on lockdown and start howling through the hallways”

“Does he really do that?” Tubbo asked, curiosity overtaking his nerves. 

“Oh, yeah. This one time a chicken managed to walk through the portal into the lobby, and Sam literally tore apart the foyer. Ant and I just watched since we weren’t really ‘guards’ back then, but it was so painfully slow with the mining fatigue and all-”

“Jesus fucking Christ-”

“Language”

“-what is it with everyone and long drawn out stories? We don’t care if Sam plays with chickens or not, we need to talk to Dream!” Tommy interrupted. “Look, get Sam out here and I’ll talk to him. We can work something out, like last time”

“I dunno, Tommy,” Bad shook his head. “Sam introduced a new procedure after you left. I’m not sure I’m even supposed to be talking to you”

“What procedure?” Tubbo asked.

“The TommyInnit Procedure. Basically it means that if Tommy shows up and starts yelling I’m supposed to stand out here and tell you to ‘go see Sam Nook, he’ll entertain you until Sam is ready’” 

“ _Entertain me?_ Like I’m some sort of _toddler?_ ”

“To be fair, Tommy,” Tubbo started carefully. “You do kinda act like it sometimes…”

“Well at least I’m not a clingy bitch like you!” 

“Language, Tommy,” Bad scolds, his motherly tone grating on Tommy’s ears. “You can yell at me all you want to, but it took me forever to get Sam to trust me enough to make Ant and I guards. Please just leave and come back tomorrow, or something. I’m sure whatever it is you need to talk to Dream about can wait” 

“No, it really _can’t”_ Tommy grumbled, digging his heels into the dirt. 

“Oh come on, Tommy. What’s so important you’d risk making Sam mad at you?” 

Tommy paused, thumbing the note in his pocket. Was it a bad idea to show anyone else the note? What if they destroyed it, or took it away? What if they locked Dream up tighter? What if they already knew everything, and hadn’t told Tommy and Tubbo because they were ‘too young’? What if-

Tommy felt a hand on his shoulder, and glanced left to see Tubbo giving him a curt nod.

Right. He could do this. Just do what he’s always done: don’t think about anything and win anyway. 

“We need to talk to Dream about this” Tommy admitted, pulling the note out of his pocket and handing it over to Bad. 

The few moments of silence Bad took to read over the note were some of the most tense moments of Tommy’s life. 

Tommy used to think Bad was an okay guy. Before he’d found that egg, Bad had just been a random dude who occasionally yelled at him for swearing. Annoying, sure, but it was also kinda endearing. But lately, he’d been...different. Now he was scarier, always whispering to himself and lurking in corners. It was almost like he was possessed, but Tommy could figure out _that_ issue after he figured out the issue with Dream. 

If there even _is_ an issue. 

“Hmm,” Bad mused after he had finished reading the note. “That’s...strange”

“You’re telling us,” Tommy agreed, swiftly nabbing the note back from Bad and pocketing it. 

“Why are you trying to see him if he specifically told you _not_ to?”

“Because he’s Tommyinnit” Tubbo explained, knitting his fingers behind his back. 

Tommy glanced at Tubbo in annoyance, but chose not to say anything.

“Look,” he said plainly. “Just get Sam out here so he can let us in to talking to Dream”

Bad swallowed, thinking deeply.

“Okay, look. You can wait in the lobby for a little bit, and I’ll go tell Sam you wanna see Dream. But if he takes away my job because of this Tommy, you’ll be in so much trouble…” he trailed off, clenching and unclenching his fist.

“Got it. Thanks, Bad” Tubbo cut in, interrupting the smart remark Tommy had been preparing to say.

The lobby was just as musty and intimidating as it was when Tommy had last visited Dream, the lava and lack of windows causing a slight smoke to hover just below the ceiling. Ant was sitting cross-legged against the main desk, flipping through a book Tommy couldn’t remember the name of. His eyes were that same shade of crimson red as they had been last time Tommy had seen him. He didn’t look up as the trio entered, giving Bad a small ‘hmm’ when the demon called a greeting. 

“I’ll go grab Sam. You two wait here, and Tubbo? Please, for the love of anything you believe in, _don’t let Tommy touch anything_ ” Bad practically begged, picking up a space guard’s keycard from behind the front desk and stepping over Ant carefully. 

“Oh, c’mon! I can be responsible!” Tommy shouted at the same time Tubbo saluted cheerfully. “You can count on me, Bad! I promise to keep him in line”

Bad shook his head nervously as he turned away, walking down the hall and disappearing in the corridor’s darkness.

Tommy twiddled his thumbs. He hadn’t expected Sam to be so caught up with Dream that he wouldn’t be able to come see them, and he certainly hadn’t expected Sam to set up a whole procedure _just_ for keeping Tommy away. Either Sam cared that much about Tommy that’d he’d go so far as to literally set up laws to keep him away from Dream, or Sam cared so much about his person he’d go so far as to literally set up laws to keep it away from Tommy. Either way, Tommy couldn’t help but feel a small tinge of disappointment. He’d been so excited to see Sam again that he had kind of forgotten about that Daunting Warden side of him. He also hadn’t expected Bad and Ant to be here, especially as prison guards. Didn’t Sam know about the egg? Wasn’t this like...a serious breach in security (not to mention morality)? Had _Sam_ been possessed by the egg? What would that mean for the prison? Had they gotten to Dream? Was that why he had given Tommy that stupid little note? Was Phil wrong, and it was just the egg being a bitch? How could they even begin to-

“Dude, Tommy,” Ant interjected, pulling Tommy out of his thoughts. “I’m trying to read. Can you keep the panicking to a whisper, or not at all?” 

“What?” Tommy answered, scowling.

“The hyperventilating, man. It’s not doing any good for my immersion” 

“He’s right, Tommy,” Tubbo admitted, resting a hand on Tommy’s shoulder. “You need to calm down”

“You calm down” Tommy muttered in response, taking a deep breath. He’d never admit it out loud, but Tubbo was right. Every time he started to think about the possible conspiracies they might be facing, he tends to dig up those horrible feelings he’d been pushing down ever since exile-

Nope. He wasn’t doing that again. No time for traumatic flashbacks and visual nightmares. Gotta focus on the here and now. 

They waited for another thirty seconds before Bad suddenly came bursting back into the room, breathing heavily and sweating like a pig.

“Ant, c’mon. We have a problem” He declared, resting his arm on the wall and leaning his weight against it. 

“What? What problem?” Ant moaned, rolling his eyes and placing a bookmark on his page. 

“Something’s wrong with Sam. He isn’t responding”

“Whaddya mean he isn’t responding? Yell louder”

“I’ve been _yelling_ ever since I _got there_ . Get your butt off the floor and _help me_ ” Bad ordered, straightening his spine and frowning.

“Wait, wait, wait. Hold the fuck up, you don’t get to just _ditch us,_ ” Tommy spat. “We’re coming with you”

“Absolutely not. Sam’s already gonna be ticked I let you in the lobby, he’ll cut my head off if I let you back there” Bad shook his head.

“There’ll be two guards with us the whole time. Would it help if only one of us went?” Tubbo offered, holding his hands up in surrender. “Let Tommy go; he’s the one with the plan”

Bad raised an eyebrow. 

Tubbo huffed. “Fine, he’s the one who actually _wants_ to be here. I’ll even wait out on the foyer”

Bad considered it for a moment, but was quickly cut off as Ant shook his head.

“I know this isn’t exactly procedure, Bad, but if there actually _is_ a problem, it’d be better if they came with us. Four is a bigger number than two” He said, grabbing the keycard out of Bad’s hand and marching down the hallway. “C’mon. I wanna get back to my book” 

Tubbo and Tommy looked at each other before following quickly, walking briskly past the empty cells and winding corridors. Tommy was sort of surprised the guards had been so ready to let two visitors inside to meet Prisoner No.1. He had already guessed they weren’t as keen as keeping this prison perfect, since this place was Sam’s construction baby, not theirs, but this was still a weird turn of events. Not to mention what the hell was happening with Sam. Maybe he’d just...fallen asleep? Probably not, but what the hell: he was just ready to get some _real_ answers directly from the source of the questions. 

The quartet soon arrived at the entrance of the maximum security cell, with Bad and Ant scanning the room for anything in particular. 

“The lava’s still down” Ant noticed.

“Yeah,” Bad agreed. “I saw that too. Can’t tell if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, though”

“Maybe Sam’s stuck?” Tubbo theorized, leaning towards the lava to try and see through it and accidentally burning his nose. 

“Nah, not possible. He’d have said something, and let’s be honest: it’s Sam. He probably has like sixteen different ways out” Tommy denied, tugging Tubbo away from the lava.

“Raise the lava, Bad. Dream probably knows what happened to him” Ant deduced, standing on the bridge in preparation. 

Bad murmured in agreement, walking over to the lever and giving it a sharp tug. 

The sound of the lava slowly slipping away from the entrance was the only noise filling the silence as the quartet waited. Tommy wondered internally if it’s always supposed to be this awkward. Surely Sam could’ve built some sort of...music machine for this one security measure. 

The lava fell away, and four sets of eyes laid themselves on the horrific display set before them.

The Warden was hanging from the ceiling by his hands, his sword stabbed through one palm and his trident impaled through the other. A wound was dug horizontally across his eyes, still dripping with slick blood. His jaw was split in two in such a brutal matter Tommy wasn’t sure if it had been cut or snapped in half. Sam’s midsection was cleanly sliced to pieces in an obvious attempt to hollow him out, his stomach and intestines spilling onto the black stone floor like a rotting ham served up alongside a plate of pulsating sausages. His legs and feet were bent in an unnatural manner akin to a popsicle stick that had been crushed and broken a thousand times over. What seemed like a million gashs, burns, and bruises littered practically every aspect of Sam’s body, the most serious being around his chest and legs. His liver was tossed haphazardly to the side, with even cuts running alongside the bulging organ that reminded Tommy of bite marks. 

Crowning this bloody artistic demonstration was a large smile, painted perfectly on the far wall in Sam’s blood.

Dream was gone. 

  
  



	11. Birth Of Bygones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bit of a filler chapter but we living in the moment. hope y’all enjoy anyway. next chapter we getting into the egg-cellent stuff

The rest of the afternoon was a blur.

Tommy vaguely remembered screaming, but he couldn’t tell where it had come from. He’d been too busy choking down the bile that had been rising in his throat ever since he’d spotted Sam’s liver. Tubbo hadn’t been so lucky, throwing up scraps of brown that Tommy recognized as the steak they’d had for breakfast this morning. 

Ant and Bad were gone, shrieking about the egg and barely remembering to pull the lever for the alarm. 

Tommy promised himself that after this whole thing was over, he’d make Sam change that alarm to something less ominous. Sure, it did wonders for his concentration and actually spurned him to  _ do  _ something, but it also fanned the flames of the absolute fear that was shooting through him.

When had this happened?  _ How  _ had this happened? Sam wouldn’t have stayed quiet during all of this- he couldn’t have! 

_ Soundproof cells,  _ Sam’s voice rang inside Tommy’s head.  _ Makes it easier if we need to...execute...one of the prisoners _

Tommy had been so on-board with the idea back then. Sam had acted like it was the perfect thing to do; just another flawless security detail on the already inescapable prison. 

How could any of them had known one of the prisoners would take it to the extreme?

Tommy didn’t know what to do. Why wasn’t Sam respawning? He had lives left; Tommy knew that! The only reason why he wouldn’t be is if Sam was still alive...and considering the Warden’s entire organ collection was on full display Tommy seriously doubted  _ any  _ part of Sam was still functional. 

So why wasn’t Sam  _ here?  _ Why hadn’t he put the prison on lockdown as soon as Dream had jumped him? What was so different this time that it shut down Sam completely?

Would Sam ever come back? 

No. Tommy couldn’t think about that right now. Tubbo was depending on him. Tubbo was-

_ Explosions _

_ Dream and Techno laughing _

_ Phil looking at him with cold, unforgiving eyes _

_ Withers everywhere  _

_ Screams _

_ Fire _

_ Who was he supposed to be when he kept losing like this?- _

Tommy had to practically slap himself. There he went again, thinking about stuff that had happened forever ago when he needed to focus on the here and now. 

Rationalize and calm down. Breathe and think. Don’t pay attention to how Sam’s corpse smells as the warmth of the lava sped up the decomposition. 

_ How could this have happened?!  _ Tommy thought, grabbing Tubbo’s wrist and making a bee-line for the exit.  _ Sam was supposed to be the end-all-be-all of this place. Dream was unarmed and alone. How could he have overpowered Sam enough to do this? And how had he escaped? Bad and Ant had been here this whole time, waiting for something like this to happen…and yet Dream is just gone!  _

Tommy knew Dream was a sadistic, evil, manipulative asshole, but he didn’t think he’d go as far as to do something like  _ this.  _ And his apparent escape hadn’t been the extravagant fire show that Tommy had been expecting to see. 

_ I guess this confirms it, _ Tommy thought sadly as he led Tubbo out of the prison.  _ Whatever’s happening to Dream really is supernatural.  _

Tommy felt he should be happy with a solid conclusion, but he couldn’t think about that while Tubbo has a full-blown panic attack right behind him.

Tommy knew Tubbo wasn’t as resilient as he was. It’s what made him a great leader, and an even better friend: the ability to have so much empathy it made you seem weak. Tubbo wasn’t weak no matter what anyone else said, but having an ability to care about someone else to such an extreme it stressed the mind  _ and  _ body?

Tommy wasn’t sure a few breathing exercises could help Tubbo calm down, not with that alarm still blaring in their ears.

They made it outside the prison fine, save a couple layers of sweat from the exhaustion and heat. They could still hear the alarm from out here, and Tommy couldn’t stop and dawdle as the residents of the SMP came flooding out of their houses in confusion. They could figure out what happened on their own.

He needed to get Tubbo away from here so they could both collect their thoughts. He needed to take a step back and process what happened.

He needed to find Dream, pin him down, and either kill him or stamp out whatever was using him. 

But he couldn’t do that alone, so he’d rescue Tubbo from his panicked state of mind and seek out help.

Techno would be unlikely, but Phil might be up to it. After all, if Phil’s story about the tree was true, he’d already had an encounter with it and that meant he probably knew how to deal with it. 

George and Sapnap would want their friend back.

Sam is…unavailable.

Who else would want to help them?

And where the hell was Bad and Ant? 

[<>]

Try as he might, Dream couldn’t stop retching. 

It had started when he’d grabbed Sam’s jaw and broke the bone in two, worsened when he’d taken Sam’s weapons and hung him from the ceiling, and boiled over to detrimental effects when he’d taken a bite out of Sam’s liver. 

His body kept trying over and over to cough up those chunks of vile meat, but each time the acid reached his throat it’d slip back down into his stomach and repeat the whole torturous cycle. 

“ **Of course I’m not gonna let you upchuck our meal. We need our strength, Dreamer** ” It taunted into his ear, floating miraculously behind him. 

Dream was heaving like a sick dog on a tiny island a few yards away from the prison, leaning his arm against a nearby tree for support as his body battled with his cruel patron. He didn’t remember much about his apparent escape, only the surprise attack on Sam and painting the smile on the wall. Everything after that was a mixture of darkness and cold. 

He was suddenly wrenched away from the tree and onto his hands and knees when another wave of painful coughs and useless gagging wracked his body with blistering pains along his throat. A spare few droplets of stomach acid managed to drip out of his mouth, but the rest of the contents (along with, most importantly, the pieces of Sam’s liver) calmly slipped back down his throat.

“ **You’re kidding, right? We took like...four bites! And they weren’t even big ones! You’re telling me you’re so weak you can’t even take a tiny bit of cannibalism?** ” It shook his head, tutting his tongue. “ **We’ll have to work on that. Maybe we should find someone else. I heard that Puffy lady lives in the area-** ”

“No!” Dream managed to shout, hacking and coughing due to the sudden outburst. “No. Don’t you dare touch her. Don’t you fucking dare” 

“ **Who’s gonna stop me, Dreamer? You?** ”

“I...I’ll…”

“ **I...I’ll…** ” It mocked, laughing. “ **You’ll what? Kick me out? Wrap your hands around my throat and squeeze the life outta me? Throw yourself off a cliff so I can’t have a body to hurt folks with? Please. You can barely stomach a tiny bit of good food, much less work up the guts to actually** **_do_ ** **something** ”

It chuckled lowly, shrugging. “ **But you’re right. We really** **_shouldn’t_ ** **go after Mother Goose. We’ve got a bigger problem to take care of** ”

“And what would that be?” Dream asked, slowly rising to his feet as his stomach had, momentarily, stopped trying to kill him.

“ **I got a debt to repay. Didya really think I busted us out on my own?** ” It shook it’s head. “ **Nah. I might be...well...me, but even I needed help getting outta that box. Luckily, we apparently caught the eye of a very impressive individual** ”

“So someone broke you out?”

“ **Some** **_thing_ ** **broke** **_us_ ** **out. C’mon, Dream, don’t leave yourself outta this equation. We’re a dynamic duo!** ”

“There’s nothing ‘dynamic’ about us…” Dream muttered, pressing his back against the tree in a last desperate attempt to steady himself. 

“ **Don’t be such a bitch, Dreamer. Admit it; you had just as much fun as I did** ”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me…”

“ **Oh, come on. You know he deserved it** ”

“ _ Deserved  _ it? What the  _ hell  _ are you talking about?!” 

“ **That motherfucker was practically begging for it! Building an inescapable vault to house the worst of the worst, then getting fucking** **_murdered_ ** **by the** **_one_ ** **prisoner he was tasked to keep? This time tomorrow, Dreamer, this whole scenario’s gonna end up in Top Ten Most Ironic Moments Of All Time!** ”

It kicked its head back in a laugh, it’s black eyes watching the sun set behind them. “ **And honestly, Dreamer? I know you enjoyed it; I do. Because while** **_I_ ** **wanted to stop after we had lunch,** **_you_ ** **were the one who decided we should paint our little symbol on the wall. I woulda preferred we left right then and there, but** **_you_ ** **decided we should be extra terrifying and give whoever found the Warden’s corpse just a sprinkle more trauma! You go on and on about how much you hate me, but news flash, Dreamer: I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you** ”

Dream tore a piece of bark off of the tree he was leaning on, shoving it into his mouth in an effort to give his mind something to focus on that wasn’t the chunks of human organ digesting in his stomach and the black-eyed bastard who was trying to get underneath his skin. Of course he hadn’t wanted to hurt Sam: it was just saying that to be mean. It simply wasn’t possible, it wasn’t the kind of person Dream was. 

“ **You mean it wasn’t the kind of person you** **_used_ ** **to be** ” It piped up, it’s voice dripping with mock-kindness. 

Dream swallowed the strip of wood he was chewing on, half-hoping it would let him vomit his stomach up to prevent any negative side-effects of eating bark. It grinned at him with a toothy smile, and shook it’s head like a disappointed mother. Dream rolled his eyes and tossed his half-eaten lumber aside. He could already feel his stomach begin knotting itself again in preparation for another fit of hacking and burning bile. 

“Where are you taking me?” Dream mumbled, sliding down the tree and burning his face in his knees. 

“ **We’re gonna go pay our liberator a little visit. No offense to it, but I’m not in the mood for competition. You down for that?** ” 

“Do I have a choice?”

“ **No, but it’d be better for you if you said ‘yes’** ” 

“Why would it be better for me? You’re probably gonna make me...eat them again”

It rolled its eyes and crouched down to Dream’s level, blinking at him. “ **Okay, look. How about we make a deal? You give whatever consent you got left, and I promise not to eat anybody for the rest of the day** ”

“The rest of the day?”

“ **I get hungry too, Dreamer. Just because I’ve got a wider range of stuff I like doesn’t mean anything** ”

“Why are you even asking me to say yes? Wouldn’t you just march me over there and do what you wanted anyway?”

“ **Call it mentally relaxing** ”

“Mentally relaxing? Do you even have a mental state?”

“ **Then call it ‘I exhausted myself taking out the Warden and don’t wanna struggle with you for control** ”

Dream scoffed. “You? Exhausted? Gimme a break, there’s no way-”

“ **I don’t tire easily, Dreamer, I know. But your stupid runes stopped me from exercising, and the little bit of miracle I performed was** **_draining_ ** **. And hey, fun fact: I used to be human. I know you’re not exactly in good shape to be fighting me, either. I’m giving you a break here** ” 

“Are you really trying to tell me you’re  _ helping me  _ while a chunk of someone’s  _ fucking liver  _ sits in my stomach?”

“ **Take the offer or don’t, I don’t really care. But I don’t wanna spend a day just laying around waiting for you to work your strength back up so I don’t lug your sorry excuse for a meat suit across the continent** ” 

“Why would I care?”

“ **Come on, Dreamer. You know what I’m like when I’m pissed off** ”

Dream bit his tongue, flashing back to those long nights of absolute torture and shrill laughter. He could take it himself, of course, but it was free now; it probably wouldn’t stop with just him. 

Taking this offer was selfish. It was selfish, cruel, and heartless. And yet here he was, seriously considering handing the reins over to it for an afternoon to go off and do something horrible.

What was wrong with him? Had he really snapped that quickly? 

What would happen if he said yes? Would he just...disappear?

“ **No, you idiot. Not even I’m strong enough to wipe out someone’s thoughts entirely. I’ll probably just put you to sleep for a while and let you catch a break** ” 

“And what would you do?” Dream snapped, jerking his head up. “What kind of atrocity would you commit?”

“ **Murder, probably. But I could make it quick if I had full control. Come on, Dreamer, just let me in** ”

Let it in? 

Like he had done last time? 

No, he’d seen what happened when he let it in. He wasn't going to let it happen again. Never again.

It clicked it’s tongue and stood up, throwing its hands up in disgust. “ **Seriously? I finally give you the chance to just chill for a few hours, and you spit in my face? Fuck it, then. No rest for you, and I don’t have to go on a diet. Get up. We have a ways to walk** ” 


End file.
